North Dakota Economic And Prosperity Alliance

8/9/2019 North Dakota Economic And Prosperity Alliance

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North Dakota Economic Security and Prosperity Alliance1003 E. Interstate Ave., Suite 107, Bismarck NO 58503

RE: Invitation to July 21 ForumDear North Dakota Leader,On behalf of the North Dakota Economic Security and Prosperity Alliance(NDESPA), I would like to invite you to an informational forum surrounding aState Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in North Dakota. The forum is entitled "IsA State Earned Income Tax Credit Right for North Dakota?" and is intended bothto provide information and. answer questions about a state EITC in North Dakotaas well as to explore whether a state EITC is an appropriate choice for NorthDakota - for taxpayers, business owners, state government and others.NDESPA is eager to have a dialogue about the benefits to the state and NorthDakotans a state EITC would bring, but also to hear concerns and arguments onall sides of the issue.The forum will include presentations from the North Dakota State Data Centerand the North Dakota Economic Policy Project on the statistics associated withan EITC in North Dakota, as well as how EITC initiatives have operated in otherstates.I would be pleased if you would join us on July 21st from 1:00 pm - 4:30 pm atthe North Dakota Heritage Center on the State Capitol grounds, ConferenceRooms A&B to help answer the question, "Is A State Earned Income Tax CreditRight For North Dakota?'Please RSVP by calling Erin Hocking at 701-224-0588, extension # 105 or byemail [email protected],

Paul RonningenNDESPA ChairpersonChildren's Defense Fund of North Dakota

The NO Economic Security and Prosperity Alliance works to build andsustain a system of economic security for all through poverty awarenessand education, grass roots and community capacity building, research anddata development, and promotion of policies and practices to eliminate

disparities and obstacles for achieving economic security.


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A State Earned Income Tax Credit for North Dakota23 states, the District of Columbia and several political subdivisions have created EITC

programs based on the federal program. .Background* The Earned Income Tax Credit is a federal tax refund that helps working families. An anti-poverty program that encourages work, the federal EITC lifts 6.5 million people over thepoverty threshold every year.* In 2008, North Dakota had approximately 40,000 federal EITC recipients, receiving, anaverage $t804 each. In all, the federal EITC returned $72 million to North Dakota'sfamilies and communities.* A state EITC would generate an additional $7.2 million in economic impact for NDcommunities. Working families typically use EITC refunds to payoff debt financetransportation to work, invest in education, and buy basic necessities-all of which have animpact on local communities.*97 % of EITC returns are reinvested in local communities. Any ND money used toward astate EITC would likely be re-circulated back into North Dakota's economy, generatingadditional sales tax, benefitting local businesses and stimulating local economies.* A state EITC would make North Dakota's tax system more equitable. Families with thelowest income (bottom 20%) pay 9.4% of their income in state taxes, whereas the top 1%of North Dakota earners pays 4.3%. Passing a state EITC would mitigate the argument thattax cuts inordinately benefit upper incomes.* State and Federal EITCs are refunds of earned income and therefore encourage work. Thevast majority of poor children in North Dakota have working parents. 61% of children inlow-income families have at least one parent who is employed full-time, year around. Thesefamilies would likely benefit from a state EITe.Administration* State EITC programs are easy to implement, administer and claim. They typically'piggyback' on the federal EITC and are a fixed percentage of the federal credit, therefore,there would be little to no additional administrative costs to North Dakota.* The nationwide state EITC average is about 16% (ranging from 3.5% to 43%) A stateEITC of 10% would be less than one half of one percent of North Dakota's revenues, (.5% ofrevenues for the 2009-2011 biennium are approximately $16.5 million. Over the biennium,a 10% state EITC would have been about $14.4 million.) .

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North Dakota Economic SecurityAnd Prosperity Alliance

(NDESPA)

NDESPA History and Accomplishments: With initial support from the SeattleFoundation, Strategies to Eliminate Poverty (STEP) program, the NDESPA began inlate 2008 as a coalition of advocates with an early purpose of promoting passage ofa state earned income tax credit (EITC) in North Dakota. Although the legislationultimately failed, the NDESPA continues its work, in an even broader scopeexemplified by the following vision and mission statements, adopted in 2009:

NDESPA Vision StatementWith the help of supportive policy makers and communities, all NorthDakotans will have the tools they need to achieve and maintain economicsecurity for themselves and their families.NDESPA Mission StatementThe ND Economic Security and Prosperity Alliance works to build andsustain a system of economic security for all through poverty awarenessand education, grassroots and community capacity building, research anddata development, and promotion of policies and practices to eliminatedisparities and obstacles for achieving economic security.

Since originally forming, NDESPA has maintained work in the following key areas ofeducation, outreach and advocacy:

Coalition meetings. conference calls and electronic organization: to provideroutine communication, coordination and planning activities Research and data gathering: to provide accurate, comprehensive evidence-

based support for NDESPA efforts through the North Dakota Economic PolicyProject, a newly funded State Fiscal Analysis Initiative (SFAI) in North Dakota Public Education and advocacy: to remain in contact with legislative

champions, to assist with press releases and conferences, to providetestimony at interim committee hearings, to gain greater legislativesupportjmomentum and to make individual contacts with district legislators;to inform policy makers and the public about the benefits of povertyreduction efforts

Coalition-building: to increase the diversity and reach of the coalition and toprovide feedback to constituencies to build the coalition into the futureOver the past year, NDESPA accomplishments have included the building of astronger, bigger, more diverse coalition, partnering to become a CFED Assets andOpportunities Scorecard Release Partner (first time for North Dakota) and being

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invited by the Northwest Area Foundation to apply for grant funds to develop aState Fiscal Analysis Initiative, another first for our state.Scope of Work: In the coming year and a half, the scope of work of the NDESPAincludes these key elements:

Refining a public relations plan utilizing a media expert/communityorganizer to frame media messages from the CFED Assets and OpportunitiesScorecard along with the Northwest Area Foundation survey resultscompiled in the "Struggling to Make Ends Meet" Initiative and new evidence-based research generated by the North Dakota Economic Policy Project;

Through these messages, NDESPA will continue to reach the public, raiseawareness of the issues and increase momentum for the NDESPA coalition-building;

Developing and documenting of evidence-based policy and budgetrecommendations as well as draft legislation in preparation for the 62ndNorth Dakota Legislative Assembly in 2011;

Convening of a second "Summit of Organizations and Leaders" in the fall of2010 in Bismarck to continue building the coalition that creates the agendafor assuring prosperity for all North Dakotans and to assure broad knowledgeof the "legislative package" prepared for the legislative session in 2011;

Conduct public policy roundtable meetings and town hall forums across thestate to engage citizens in the NDESPA movement and gain traction forspecific legislative proposals; and

Assuring passage of desired legislation and policy recommendations throughgrassroots advocacy, coalition-building and broad communication effortswith constituents and policy makers.

NDESPA is committed to connecting this effort to a broader agenda for povertyreduction and asset building in North Dakota into the future. While North Dakotaexperiences an unprecedented growth in financial resources, there remain childrenand families who have no health care, food pantries with not enough food andwaiting lists for affordable child care. These issues place increased burden onparents/adults already working multiple jobs simply to make ends meet.The coalition is broad and diverse. Some organizations are tasked with helping aparticular segment of people (abused women, people with disabilities, singleparents) but all organizations are committed to a partnership that does not drawthose distinctions. Rather, they wish to work together toward the common goal ofpoverty reduction recognizing that a "rising tide will lift all ships." Membership inthe coalition includes the following organizations:

North Dakota Women's Network North Dakota State Data Center North Dakota Center for the Public Good and NDPEOPLE.ORG

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North Dakota Council on Abused Women's Services North Dakota Disabilities Advocacy Consortium North Dakota Head Start Association United Tribes Technical College AARP North Dakota American Association of University Women in North Dakota North Dakota Catholic Conference North Dakota Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers Children's Defense Fund, North Dakota North Dakota Medicaid Infrastructure Grant Project North Dakota Community Action Partnership

North Dakota Economic And Prosperity Alliance

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