[PEN-L] SIPP: Rep. Serrano to Propose Amendment - Your Calls Needed Today!!!

[Ruth Indeck]

Dear Friends and Colleagues, Tomorrow, Rep. Serrano (D–NY) will propose an amendment to require the Census Bureau to continue the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). This may be our only chance to get language added to an appropriations bill that can save the SIPP! If your Representative is on the Appropriations committee, please take a moment TODAY to call or email their office, and tell them that you support Rep. Serrano’s effort to save the SIPP. If your Representative isn’t on the committee, contact a Representative from your state who is. (To check who from your state is on the Appropriations Committee, click here.) For call-in information and a sample script, see below. Please forward this message widely and let me know if you have any questions at 202-293-5380 x110. Thank you for your continued support! Sincerely, Liz Chimienti CEPR Calling your Representative: You can call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask for your Representative, or find their direct lines by entering your zip code at http://www.congress.org. Ask to speak to the legislative director or the staffer who handles Commerce Department appropriations. Sample Script: Hello, my name is _______________ and I live in [your town/city]. I am calling to urge Representative _______________ to support efforts to continue the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) in fiscal year 2007. Tomorrow in committee Rep. Serrano will offer an amendment to the Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations bill to restore SIPP funding. I hope Representative _______________ will vote for it. The SIPP is a unique and essential source of data on income and poverty. Without the SIPP we will have a harder time knowing which programs are working and judging how to prioritize scare government resources. Thanks for your time. More talking points and a call-in guide can be found on our website at http://www.ceprdata.org/savesipp/downloads.php.