The State Priorities Partnership (SPP), originally known as the State Fiscal Analysis Initiative, ¹ is a network of left-of-center think tanks organized under the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) in 40 American states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico ² devoted to public policy analysis and left-of-center policy goals, including increasing government expenditure on education, healthcare, welfare, and in other domains. SPP member organizations, which have been called “mini-CBPPs,” ³ include the Fiscal Policy Institute of New York, the Michigan League for Public Policy, Policy Matters Ohio, the Florida Policy Institute, Every Texan, and the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis of Virginia.

History

The State Priorities Partnership originated in 1993 from conversations between Center on Budget and Policy Priorities staff and Michael Lipsky, at the time a Ford Foundation program officer and later a distinguished senior fellow at the left-of-center think tank Demos. It launched as the State Fiscal Analysis Initiative with funding from the Ford Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation with 12 state-based member organizations. ⁴

According to a report from the Open Philanthropy Project, SPP constitutes “about half of the [CBPP]’s work.” ⁵

Policy Goals

The State Priorities Partnership supports the federal and state Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) which it calls “the nation’s most effective tool for reducing child poverty.” ¹

SPP supports more progressive tax codes, particularly in the form of raising taxes on high income earners. ⁶

SPP broadly opposes tax cuts that transfer funds from government programs to businesses and high-income earners. ¹

SPP opposes state limits on annual tax revenue, including TABOR amendments. From 2004 to 2014, SPP helped stop government spending limits in 36 states. ^{1 4}

SPP supported state-led initiatives to implement the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion. ¹

Though SPP was initially focused on fiscal policies, it has extended to supporting other left-of-center policies, including liberal-expansionist immigration policy, liberal approaches to criminal justice, and “racial and gender equity.” SPP has a “Racial Equity Working Group.” ^{7 4 8}

Activities

The State Priorities Partnership primarily coordinates activity and efforts between member organizations to develop best practices for research and advocacy. ⁹

State Immigration Project

The State Immigration Project is a state-level coalition that supports liberal-expansionist immigration policy. SPP and 15 of its organization members (as of 2022) are coalition members along with the National Immigration Law Center, the Immigration Research Institute, and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the State Immigration Project helped raise $2.8 billion in financial assistance across eight states, expand COVID-19 testing in numerous states, and achieve the first repeal of an identification law in Colorado, among other legislative successes. ¹⁰

State Priorities Partnership Corner

The SPP Corner compiles articles from every member organization categorized under “Immigration Resources,” “[Earned Income Tax Credit] Media Library,” “Racial Equity Media Library,” “Education Reports Library,” and “COVID-19 Response and Recession Media Library.” ¹¹

Job Bulletin

SPP hosts a job bulletin for its member organizations. ¹²

Funding

In 2022, the Carnegie Corporation of New York gave $1.1 million to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities for the State Priorities Partnership to support its liberal immigration advocacy. ¹³

In 2020, the Rockefeller Foundation granted $500,000 to the CBPP “for use by its State Priorities Partnership” to support state-level Earned Income Tax Credits and other forms of support for low income individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic. ¹⁴

In 2015, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation gave grants to ten state organizations within the SPP. ¹⁵

In 2014, the Kresge Foundation granted $400,000 to the CBPP for the SPP for its budget and tax analyses. ¹⁶

1. “Advancing Equity and Prosperity.” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.cbpp.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/state_priorities_partnership_2014_brochure.pdf.
2. “Homepage.” State Priorities Partnership. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://statepriorities.org/.
3. “How the Right Trounced Liberals in the States.” Democracy Journal. Winter 2016. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/39/how-the-right-trounced-liberals-in-the-states/.
4. Ross, Jean. “The State Priorities Partnership: Celebrating 20 years of impact.” Ford Foundation. November 24, 2014. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.fordfoundation.org/news-and-stories/stories/the-state-priorities-partnership-celebrating-20-years-of-impact/.
5. Kahn, Suzanne. “The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: Building a Responsive Organization that Lasts.” Open Philanthropy. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.openphilanthropy.org/wp-content/uploads/Case_Study_Center_on_Budget_and_Policy_Priorities.pdf.
6. ^[1] “Advancing Equity and Prosperity.” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.cbpp.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/state_priorities_partnership_2014_brochure.pdf.
7. “Ann Beeson.” SPLC. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.splcenter.org/about/staff/ann-beeson.
8. “About.” State Priorities Partnership. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://statepriorities.org/about/.
9. ^[1] “Homepage.” State Priorities Partnership. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://statepriorities.org/.
10. “The State Immigration Project.” State Immigration Project. 2022. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://immresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/State-Immigration-Project-explainer.pdf.
11. “SPP Corner.” State Priorities Partnership. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://statepriorities.org/spp-corner/.
12. “Jobs.” State Priorities Partnership. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://statepriorities.org/jobs/.
13. “Carnegie Corporation of New York Board Approves 38 Grants Totaling $22,408,000.” Carnegie Corporation of New York. June 18, 2022. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.carnegie.org/news/articles/carnegie-corporation-new-york-board-approves-38-grants-totaling-22408000/.
14. ^[1] “Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.” Ford Foundation. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/grant/grant-center-on-budget-and-policy-priorities-2020/.
15. “State Fiscal Analysis Initiative.” Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://www.mott.org/grants/200000494-08/.
16. “Human Services.” Kresge Foundation. 2014. Accessed September 9, 2023. https://kresge.org/sites/default/files/2014-human-services.pdf.