The cost of failing to pass the Build Back Better agenda in one chart

Advancing Racial Equity and Justice, Building an Economy for All, Restoring Social Trust in Democracy, Tackling Climate Change and Environmental Injustice, Build Back Better Agenda +2 More

Media Contact

Sam Hananel

Senior Director, Media Relations

[email protected]

Government Affairs

Jerry Parshall

Senior Director, Safety and Justice Campaign; Director, State and Local Government Affairs

[email protected]

Peter Gordon

Senior Director, Federal Affairs

[email protected]

by Will Ragland and Ryan Koronowski

Our leaders have a choice: Building back better, or hoping the status quo is enough. Helping tens of millions of Americans, or letting them down.

Building back better means not accepting the status quo. Building back better means dropping the child poverty rate by 40 percent. Making child care, preschool, and college attainable and affordable. Guaranteeing sick, family, and medical leave. Saving hundreds of dollars in health care premiums. Making prescription drugs affordable.Taking the climate crisis seriously. Ensuring affordable housing. All of this while making corporations and the wealthy pay their fair share.

The status quo means working families get snubbed while corporations find ways to pay little or no taxes. It means child poverty goes back up. More and more extreme climate disasters. Out-of-control child care, home care, and college costs. A worsening affordable housing crisis.

It’s a clear choice, and not one that should be influenced by fossil fuel or pharmaceutical lobbyists. Not one that needs to be bogged down in legislative minutia or excuses. What the cost of inaction would mean in one chart:

The positions of American Progress, and our policy experts, are independent, and the findings and conclusions presented are those of American Progress alone. A full list of supporters is available here. American Progress would like to acknowledge the many generous supporters who make our work possible.