As of today, President Barack Obama has proposed a 4 trillion dollar budget that will be sent to Congress for approval. For most people, this is just boring, government procedure; however, paying close attention to a federal budget can really tell us a lot about where our nation’s values lie. If not that, the budget will show how we are affected through decisions. How does Obama’s proposed budget affect us? Well let’s take a look at some of the key points in the proposed budget:

Sequestration:

This is just a big, political word for a limit in government spending. Obama is calling for a 7 percent increase in spending limits.  Essentially this end to the budget cut would allow for Obama to spend and allocate funds for many different resources and programs. Over the week, be prepared to hear politicians on the right spew arguments and claims that say Obama is spending way too much money and will lead our country into a deficit that will be impossible for us to get out of. As a matter of fact, evidence actually points to the contrary. The projected deficit “for fiscal 2016 is the lowest since President Obama took office.” Obama is actually trimming the deficit as we speak.

Education:

In the realm of education, Obama is proposing to allocate $750 million dollars towards a preschool development program sponsored by the Department of Education and $3 billion dollars toward Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Education (STEM). On the face, psychology and biology tells us that children become more intelligent when they are intellectually invested in at a young age. These children tend to do better in terms of economics. The funding beyond this initiative tells us that America is prepared to get serious on education. In addition, the allocation towards STEM gives us a heads up on where the potential job security, along with other benefits may be for the upcoming generation.

In other news, Obama is proposing $60 billion dollars over ten years to an initiative that will give free community college to participating states. This is definitely a legacy move for Obama that will help to improve the workforce along with many different local communities throughout the country.  There are still some variables present in this plan, a huge unknown is predicated on the issue of state-based funding. Some states are creating budget cuts for Community Colleges as you read this article, is it likely that these same states would be willing to fund free community colleges? Questions like these remain to be answered.

Work:

In the labor force, Obama plans to create programs that incentivizes states to implement paid leave policies for employees. As you may know, many employers offer unpaid leave for any reasons pertaining to the health of the employee or the health conditions of a family member. However, a great portion of these individuals cannot afford to lose income when they’re on leave. In addition, some employers are unprotected by some of the protections guaranteed by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) because of unqualifying statuses. Obama’s initiative’s offers some pay and greatly extends the FMLA to cover more employees.

Tax-Credits:

Under proposed legislation, Obama would offer a Child Care tax credit of up to $3,000 a child. This would cover families with children under five years old and include more families with incomes of up to $120,000. In addition, a $500 tax credit for “second earners” in working families is also included. This credit will benefit families in which both spouses work. While federal minimum wage has not been approved, these different tax credits, along with other initiatives, allow working-families the opportunity to have a greater return on their checks.

Infrastructure:

If approved by Congress, $478 billion will go towards different infrastructure programs such as buildings, bridges, roads, etc. This will be financed via a 14 percent tax rate on overseas profits. It is definitely worth wondering how this will affect the poorer communities of color who often preside in environments plagued with dilapidated housing, poorly-kept roads, and the like.

International Affairs:

With no amazement, $561 billion dollars will go to the Defense fund if approved. Our country’s top priorities includes the Islamic State and Russian aggression in Ukraine. Militarization seems to continue to be one of our nation’s biggest values.

In addition, $1 billion dollars plans to go towards the development of a “fully democratic” and economically sound Central America. With all the candor in the world, I have no clue what it means to democratize Central America. I’ll leave it to you to figure out. Creating economic opportunities in any country is always a positive, let’s hope that this does not detract from the United States of America’s economic opportunities. Personally, I do not think it will.

 

This budget proposal definitively has its benefits and ,if approved, will secure thousands of jobs and help many different Americans. In a Republican-dominated Congress, the question seems to be: is it likely that this budget proposition will be passed? For the most part, the answer is no. With all of these programs that help the middle class and working class families, the money becomes available through taxing many corporations at a higher rate. Many Republicans represent or have some kind of a vested interest in some of these corporations.  As a result, the cumulative budget may not get passed through this current Congress.

Having said that, there are some bi-partisan issues that may make it through to a revised budget that will probably be passed. In addition, there are some issues that are represented with such high public opinion that it will be within the interests of politicians to advocate for. This will definitely be something to follow through on and see which politicians share the same interests as you.

 

Sources: http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/cwg/work-flex-kit/get-started/factsheet

http:/m.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/01/2/fact-sheet-helping-all-working-families-young-children-afford-child-care

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/02/02/obama-budget-399-trillion-republicans/22695611/