Strategies

Work to partner with victims/survivors of intimate partner violence, help them with safety plans, and link them to community services (e.g., legal, housing, financial advice, emergency shelter, etc.)

Provide financial assistance to working parents, or parents attending school, to pay for child care

Expand federal or state child tax credits by increasing credit amounts, making credits refundable, decreasing or eliminating the earnings threshold, or creating a fully refundable supplement

Expand court-referred intimate partner violence offenders’ understanding of abuse, teach alternative reactions, and work to change gender role attitudes; also called batterer intervention programs (BIPs)

Provide free and confidential counseling and service referrals via telephone-based conversation, web-based chat, or text message to individuals in crisis, particularly those with severe mental health concerns

Expand refundable earned income tax credits for working individuals and families with low to moderate incomes

Adopt policies that allow custodial parents who receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) to collect all child support paid by the non-custodial parent; no portion is retained by the state

Establish locally mandated wages that are higher than state or federal minimum wage levels

Provide an 8 or 12 hour training to educate laypeople about how to assist individuals with mental health problems or at risk for problems such as depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders

Increase the lowest hourly, daily, or monthly compensation that employers may legally pay to workers