House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (D-MD) and Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA) introduced the Half-in-Ten Act of 2013, H.R. 2182, on May 23. The bill would set up a working group, the Federal Interagency Working Group on Reducing Poverty, to develop and implement a strategy to cut poverty in half in ten years. The bill would require the working group to regularly report its progress to Congress. “As the sequester continues to cut deeply across many programs that provide critical services and create opportunities, it is likely to significantly hurt those who are the most vulnerable in our economy. That’s why this is a particularly important moment for Congress to explore ways to improve anti-poverty initiatives and develop a real strategy to protect the most vulnerable and reduce poverty by half in ten years,” said Mr. Hoyer at the bill’s introduction.The bill also seeks to enhance coordination between federal, state, and local efforts to help America’s poor, and to modernize the way the federal government measures the effectiveness of federal programs by focusing on outcomes for individuals and families. The bill, which has 42 co-sponsors, has been referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.