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Building an Economy for All

Economic growth must be built on the foundation of a strong and secure middle class so that all Americans benefit from growth.

A child holds hands with her father and mother, January 12, 2020. (Getty/The Washington Post/Amanda Andrade-Rhoades)
What We're Working On

What We're Doing

Investing in a stronger and more equitable economy

We must continue to invest in research, technology, and innovation in a manner that ensures participation and benefits communities that are too often left behind. Only through such an approach can the United States remain at the cutting edge in an increasingly competitive global market.

Strengthening worker power and economic mobility

We need to increase wages, reduce poverty among working families, increase worker power, and create pathways to economic mobility for all.

Raising the floor for basic living standards

Working toward a stronger and more equitable economy for everyone involves rebuilding, expanding, and strengthening America’s social safety net to make it more comprehensive in eligibility and services as well as more flexible in how it can be accessed and used.

Creating a new social compact with business

A new social compact with business includes a regulatory vision that better aligns investors, companies, and the public interest on critical matters such as climate, workers’ rights, and equality.

By the numbers

134K

An estimated 134,000 families are pushed into poverty each year by child care expenses.

CAP, “Child Care Expenses Push an Estimated 134,000 Families Into Poverty Each Year” (2024).

A group of parents is seen outside of a day care center. Some of them are pushing strollers.
Child Care Expenses Push an Estimated 134,000 Families Into Poverty Each Year

85%

The number of businesses grew in 85 percent of counties between 2019 and 2023.

CAP, “Entrepreneurship, Startups, and Business Formation Are Booming Across the U.S.” (2024).

An
Entrepreneurship, Startups, and Business Formation Are Booming Across the U.S.

10%

An estimated 10 percent wage premium is experienced by union members compared with similar nonunion members.

CAP, “4 Ways Unions Make Our Economy and Democracy Stronger” (2024).

Members of the Boston Teachers Union and their supporters rally in support of contract measures.
4 Ways Unions Make Our Economy and Democracy Stronger

54%

Permanently extending the Trump tax cuts would increase the fiscal gap by 54 percent.

CAP, “Permanently Extending the Trump Tax Cuts Would Increase Upward Pressure on the Debt Ratio by More Than 50 Percent” (2024).

Capitol building and overcast sky
Permanently Extending the Trump Tax Cuts Would Increase Upward Pressure on the Debt Ratio by More Than 50 Percent

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Preparing for What’s Next: Lessons From Implementing the Nation’s Largest Climate Bill Upcoming Event
Then-U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on his administration’s “Investing in America” agenda at the Port of Baltimore, October 2024, in Baltimore, Maryland. (Getty/Anna Rose Layden)

Preparing for What’s Next: Lessons From Implementing the Nation’s Largest Climate Bill

Join CAP for a discussion with federal agency alumni as they share first-hand reflections and lessons from implementing the largest and most ambitious climate bill in U.S. history.

Center for American Progress Online via Zoom

Forced To Go Hungry: How the Big Beautiful Bill Strips Students of Meals Upcoming Event
Students are served lunch at Heather Hills Elementary School in Bowie, Maryland, on October 22, 2024. (Getty/Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/)

Forced To Go Hungry: How the Big Beautiful Bill Strips Students of Meals

Join CAP, alongside local leaders, parents, and nutrition and federal policy experts, to discuss the impact of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on school nutrition and how leaders are working to protect critical access to school meals.

Online via Zoom

Working-Class Voters Shifted Toward Democratic and Independent Candidates in Nearly Every 2026 Senate Race Article
A voter marks their ballot at a polling place in Bakersfield, California.

Working-Class Voters Shifted Toward Democratic and Independent Candidates in Nearly Every 2026 Senate Race

In the 2026 Senate races, working-class voters moved toward Democratic and independent candidates in nearly every race; and in eight states, their majority support flipped from backing President Donald Trump in 2024 to Democratic Senate candidates in 2026.

Jazmine Amoako

The Impact of SNAP Changes on Other Federal Programs Report

The Impact of SNAP Changes on Other Federal Programs

A new report from the National Association for the Education of Young Children and the Center for American Progress details how cuts to SNAP in H.R.1. might have ripple effects on child care funding.

Diane Girouard, Hailey Gibbs

Small but Mighty: The Path to Prosperity Starts With America’s Small Businesses Past Event

Small but Mighty: The Path to Prosperity Starts With America’s Small Businesses

Join the Center for American Progress for a discussion on the challenges facing America’s small businesses and the policy solutions that can promote entrepreneurship and economic opportunity.

Online via Zoom

Sectoral Bargaining Is Key to Protecting Workers During AI Transition Report
Picketers carrying SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild

Sectoral Bargaining Is Key to Protecting Workers During AI Transition

Collective bargaining empowers workers to protect existing jobs and find new ones during technological transitions, such as the rise of artificial intelligence, but experience shows that sometimes union density alone isn’t enough, and sectoral bargaining can help.

Aurelia Glass

What Is Private Credit and Why Should Americans Care? Article
A curved glass facade and a flat glass facade flank a stone part of the building that has the agency's seal.

What Is Private Credit and Why Should Americans Care?

The Trump administration proposal to encourage investment of retirement plans in alternative assets such as private credit, private equity, and cryptocurrency would increase risks to the savings of ordinary Americans. A closer look at private credit helps explain why.

Alexandra Thornton, Devesh Kodnani

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