Children's Programs Face Declining Share of Federal Spending, Report Finds

[Poiuyt]

Children's Programs Face Declining Share of Federal Spending, Report Finds

Funding for federal programs that help children is declining, a new study from the Urban Institute and New America Foundation finds.

The report, Kids' Share 2008: How Children Fare in the Federal Budget (40 pages, PDF), found that if current spending and revenue policies remain unchanged, funding for children's programs will account for 13.8 percent of the domestic federal budget — which excludes defense, non-defense homeland security, and international affairs — by 2018, down from 16.2 percent in 2007. While overall domestic spending is projected to increase by $771 billion over the next decade, programs for children will receive only 7.1 percent, or $55 billion, of that increase under current law.

Sponsored in part by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the second annual Kids' Share report classifies more than a hundred federal programs that spend money on children in areas such as income security, nutrition, housing, tax credits, health, social services, education, and training. According to the report, from fiscal year 2006 to 2007 the children's budget inched up 0.7 percent, while the non-child portions of the three major entitlement programs — Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid — rose 5.2 percent.

more-

http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/news/story.jhtml?id=220100013

[mmonk]

1. Kids needs come last.

We're not developed enough as a society or people.

[Telly Savalas]

2. "Donate to the children's fund? Why should I do that? What have the kids ever done for me?!?!"

Our country is being run by Mr. Krabs from Spongebob.

[MountainLaurel]

3. But we've got plenty of money to murder people overseas n/t