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Policy Matters Ohio

Federal tax overhaul threatens kids in all Ohio counties

January 29, 2018

Federal tax overhaul threatens kids in all Ohio counties

January 29, 2018



The federal government funds essential services for children in all 88 Ohio counties. The interactive map above allows the reader to scroll over the counties and see how many children are served in each by the following federally-funded services:

  • Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP);
  • Social Security benefits, including retirement, survivor and disability;
  • Cash assistance under the “Ohio Works First” program;
  • Public childcare and aftercare provided by the 21st Century Community Learning Centers federal grant program

Federal tax overhaul threatens kids in all Ohio counties

Federal budget plans in both the House and the Senate call for cuts to these programs. Withdrawal of federal funds means state legislators would have to decide whether to pay for the cuts or let the services shrink or vanish. Across the state, this would endanger hundreds of thousands of children.

Our federal legislators should commit to protecting these important programs. Call your member of Congress and add your voice to ours, asking them to protect funding for federal programs that help Ohio’s children. The number for the Congressional switchboard is (202) 224-3121.

CHIP and Medicaid keep Ohio’s children healthy

Medicaid covers children of families in poverty, and CHIP, the Children’s Health Insurance Plan, covers children in working poor families. Ohio operates CHIP as part of the Medicaid program. In 2016, 1.2 million Ohio children received health care through Medicaid, and they live in every county of the state. Rural counties with few residents may have hundreds of children enrolled in these programs. Densely populated urban counties may have well over a hundred thousand.

Nine of Ohio’s 13 largest occupational groups pay so little even at the median wage that workers in these job groups – retail, customer service, fast food, janitorial - need federal health insurance for themselves and their children.

Social Security and cash assistance protect Ohio’s most vulnerable children

Social Security is typically thought of as a retirement program, but it also offers benefits that keep families intact after a parent dies, or gets too sick or injured to work. Social Security payments support many children in each Ohio county. Without this essential program, these children might go without basic necessities.

The federal program Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) provides cash assistance to the lowest-income families with children. In fiscal year 2017, cash assistance supported 91,000 children in Ohio’s poorest families, or in foster care, and almost 13,000 parents.

Public childcare and aftercare programs prepare children for the future

In 2017, 113,000 children were in childcare thanks to the federal child care and development block grant and TANF funds. The federally-funded, state-run program allows parents to work and children to learn social skills in a safe environment.

Across the state, children boost their learning through federal 21st Century Community Learning Centers grants, which provide after-school and summer enrichment for over 43,000 children. Research shows that these programs improve attendance, attitude towards school, suspension rates and academic performance.

In short, across Ohio, children benefit from childcare, cash assistance, social security and health care provided by the federal government. Cuts to these programs would mean that these young people grow up deeper in poverty and less able to thrive. That’s bad for Ohio children – and bad for Ohio.

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Basic NeedsBudget PolicyRevenue & BudgetTax Policy

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