The Federal Budget Bill Goes against Utah’s Family Values

Utah prides itself on its commitment to family. It has a young population and large family sizes. It boasts countless family-friendly events and attractions. And family values are — allegedly — at the center of its lawmakers’ decisions.

Unfortunately, our representatives are currently in the process of advancing a federal bill that would harm the most vulnerable families in our state. Republicans’ Big Beautiful Bill proposes scaling back key tax credits on which low-income families rely to make ends meet. But it’s not too late — while the bill passed in the U.S. House, our senators now have the opportunity to make changes and protect these vital tax credits.

I’m a sociologist at the University of Utah. I have spent my career examining how policies that were never really intended to improve health do so nevertheless. These include things like food assistance, minimum wage increases, and tax credits. We typically think about how these policies affect our wallets, but they also affect our bodies. They influence whether we can afford safe housing, adequate diets, regular health care, and other basic needs that shape our physical as well as mental health.