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SUPPORT Funding for BOOST Scholarships in the Budget

As Catholics, we believe that parents have a right to ensure the best education for their children.

Quick Facts:

• BOOST scholarships enable those who might not otherwise be able to afford it with the means to do so.
• We also want to ensure expanded access to Catholic schools as an educational option for Maryland’s kids.
• BOOST is an important racial and economic justice program that closes the achievement gap for low-income Maryland children.
• Parent demand for BOOST Scholarships, based on current scholarship rates, was DOUBLE ($18 million) than the program allotment ($9 million)

OPPOSE SB 443 | HB 403 – Do not Legalize Physician Assisted Suicide

Quick Facts:

This attack on the dignity of human life:

• Puts vulnerable people, such as persons with disabilities and the elderly, at risk for abuse or coercion.
• Allows prescribing a lethal drug overdose to patients deemed to be terminally ill with less than six months to live.
• Does not require mental health evaluations and monitoring.
• Has no protection against insurance fraud or pressure.
• Does not require family notification.
• Does not require medical supervision, so if something goes wrong, like choking or a change of mind, the person is on his or her own.
• Does not have safeguards to prevent lethal and highly addictive drugs that aren’t used from getting out into our communities.

See our resources and read our bishops’ letter (English and Spanish)

SUPPORT SB 482 | HB 694: ENOUGH ACT to Address Root Causes of Poverty 

Quick Facts:

• Would direct fiscal resources to the most in-need Maryland communities for community organizations, nonprofits, faith-based organizations and others to together develop action plans to address local poverty.
• Emphasizes the importance of justice in addressing systemic issues that perpetuate poverty. By engaging community organizations and other key stakeholders, the legislation seeks to address root causes and promote lasting change in our communities.
• Provides an opportunity for Catholic parishes and nonprofits to collaborate with other community stakeholders, leveraging their resources and expertise to develop innovative solutions to poverty in their own communities.
• Fosters solidarity by bringing together diverse stakeholders to work toward a common goal of alleviating poverty. This collaborative approach reflects the Catholic belief in the interconnectedness of all people and the responsibility to care for the marginalized and vulnerable members of society.

OPPOSE SB 1028 | HB 1168: Prevent Composting Human Remains 

Quick Facts:

• Human composting, also called natural organic reduction (NOR), reduces the human body to a disposable commodity.
• The deceased person is placed in a container, usually metal and in a warehouse, with dirt, fungi and other materials, for weeks, resulting in about 400 pounds of dirt with the person’s remains mixed in.
• Human compost could be discarded in public locations with no notice that you are treading over human remains. You could be walking on or eating produce grown in soil with human remains, or your kids could be playing in it.
• Human composting is not affordable, nor environmentally sensitive (unlike “green” burials).
• As Catholics, we call for deceased persons, as temples of the Holy Spirit, to be buried intact or as cremains in a cemetery.

Learn more about human composting

SUPPORT SB 528 | HB 537: Empower Catholic School Parents with Bus Tax Credit

Quick Facts:

• Maryland’s Catholic schools serve tens of thousands of lower and middle-income families who are not provided busing through the State of Maryland, as in many other states.
• The bill would give a refundable tax credit to parents of $1,500 per student — approximately the average per-child cost to parents for chartering school buses for the school year.
• This would be environmentally friendly by expanding bus transportation and lessening the carbon footprint of potentially thousands of extra vehicles statewide every day.

SUPPORT SB 722 | HB 543: Improved Nutrition for Low-Income Seniors

 Quick Facts:

• Would allow State to provide a supplement to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), increasing the total benefit for those who are at least 62, from $40 to $75 per month.
• The elderly are among the most vulnerable members of our society, particularly those living on fixed incomes or facing health challenges who face challenges in affording basic necessities like food.
• Ensuring older Marylanders have access to adequate nutrition will help prevent health complications and demand on healthcare systems.
• Better nutrition supports older adults in remaining in their homes and communities for as long as possible, preserving their independence and quality of life.