Progressive Playbook 2024
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE
Minnesota’s Cumulative Impacts Legislation
Minnesota's communities of color and low-income residents have long faced disproportionate pollution burdens, resulting in adverse health outcomes and environmental injustices. In response, the state passed the Frontline Communities Protection Act (FCPA) in 2023, a pioneering law requiring businesses to assess the cumulative impacts of their emissions when seeking air permits in designated environmental justice areas. This legislation aims to safeguard vulnerable communities from further environmental harm and promote fairer, healthier living conditions across Minnesota.
HEALTHCARE FOR ALL
MinnesotaCare Public Option
High deductibles and copays, increased premiums, and unaffordable prescription drugs are some of the many challenges that Americans face within our health care system. In Minnesota, deductibles for a family can range between $7,000 and $20,000 per year in the individual market, in addition to monthly premiums and out-of-pocket costs and nearly 300,000 Minnesotans are uninsured. One way that states can curb health care costs is via public health insurance plans, or state public option plans. These plans allow states to expand coverage and drive health care costs down.
REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE
Maternal and Infant Cash Prescription Program
The Reproductive Justice framework, defined by SisterSong, goes beyond the “right to choose” to have an abortion and states: “We have the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities.” This framework for reproductive justice includes marginalized groups’ access to adequate prenatal and pregnancy care.
In Michigan, Rx Kids became the first citywide maternal and infant cash prescription program in the nation—establishing a new model for how we care for mothers and children. Evidence of the immediate and long-term impacts of cash transfers on people living in poverty has made one thing abundantly clear–it works. Several studies have shown the positive effects of cash transfers on infant health, prenatal mental health, early development, reduced food insecurity, school performance, and more. These impacts last into adulthood and include improved lifetime earnings and reduced anxiety and depression.
FOOD INSECURITY
Universal School Meals for All
Research shows that children’s learning outcomes are negatively impacted when they regularly experience hunger. Food insecurity affects a child’s concentration, memory, mood, and motor skills, and can even negatively impact their social-emotional skills. During the pandemic, household food insecurity more than doubled, and recent data shows that food insecurity rates have been inching closer to pandemic-level historic highs. In February 2024, 17.9 percent of households in Massachusetts reported food insecurity, with these numbers more pronounced in Black (29.5 percent) and Latino (34.5 percent) households.
Massachusetts’ School Meals for All program addresses these barriers to healthy food at home, by ensuring that every child can receive a meal, regardless of income and without stigma. Since school meals can account for over half of a child’s daily calories, they are a critical source of nutrition for many children, helping them thrive academically, physically, and socially in school and develop long-term healthier eating habits.
CRITICAL HEALTH AND SAFETY HOME REPAIRS
Pennsylvania’s Whole-Home Repairs Program
Many Pennsylvania residents live in homes requiring critical repairs, with issues ranging from structural damage to outdated heating systems. These conditions pose serious health and safety risks, particularly for low and moderate-income homeowners. To address this, the Whole-Home Repairs Program was introduced in 2022, providing grants of up to $50,000 per property for essential repairs and energy efficiency improvements. The program, backed by a $125 million allocation, aims to stabilize homeownership, enhance community resilience, and serve as a replicable model for other states.
ZERO WASTE
New York City’s Universal Residential Composting
Organic waste accounts for a third of New York City’s residential waste stream. This waste, often sent to landfills or incinerators in low-income communities of color, contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and significant public health challenges. In response, Council Member Shahana Hanif introduced Intro-244A, a groundbreaking bill that mandates a citywide residential composting program. Passed in 2023, this legislation requires all New Yorkers to participate in curbside composting, aiming to reduce waste, promote environmental justice, and support the city’s ambitious goal of achieving zero waste by 2030.