There is only one month left before Congress adjourns for the fall elections. The clock is now ticking. Here are three simple things Congress could do this month to address ordinary people’s needs, instead of slashing the estate tax:

1. Take action against falling incomes by increasing the minimum wage. It has been nine years since the last increase in the federal minimum wage. At $5.15 an hour, its purchasing power is now at the lowest level in more than a half-century. So far, the only way congressional leaders have been willing to consider a minimum wage increase is if it’s coupled with the estate tax cut. That’s giving with one hand and taking with the other, because the lost revenues will inevitably lead to cuts in health care and other services for many of the same workers. Congress should vote straight up or down on increasing the minimum wage.

2. Take action against the loss in health coverage by funding children’s health insurance. Starting on October 1, one out of every three states will have insufficient federal funding to sustain their State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Unless Congress acts swiftly to avoid this shortfall, states could have to reduce their SCHIP enrollment – putting coverage for as many as 500,000 children at risk. That is clearly moving in the wrong direction.

3. Take action against poverty by restoring cuts in child care, housing, and other critical needs. The next federal fiscal year begins on October 1, but Congress has no immediate plans to pass the appropriations bills that fund programs for families struggling to make ends meet, like child care, housing, and job training. It also does not plan to act on bills to provide for environmental protection, education, and other community needs. The reason these bills are stuck is that congressional leaders are unwilling to allocate enough funding to secure the votes to pass. Even a modest infusion of funds, to restore some of the cuts of the past two years, would be sufficient to get these bills going and on their way to the President’s desk.