The Administration (through a request by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)) is seeking comments on how to change the U.S. poverty measure. Changes in the poverty measure would affect how and if people, states and communities qualify for federal programs and funding. To ensure consideration, the comments must be provided in writing no
On Wednesday, February 12, 2020, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell challenged the theory that our “generous” public assistance programs were encouraging able-bodied adults to stay out of the workforce. The comments came during a Senate Banking Committee hearing. Senator John Neely Kennedy (R-LA) was asking about why the labor participation rates among adults is not
Series of Hearings on Administration Actions that Threaten the Welfare of Children On February 5 and 6, 2020, four subcommittees of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform held four hearings to examine the negative effects of regulations proposed by the Trump Administration relating to children including child poverty, housing, hunger, and health. On Wednesday,
On Monday, January 21, the Supreme Court Justices voted 5-4 to allow the Trump Administration to start enforcing a rule that would make it harder for immigrants to obtain green cards and access government aid by ending the nationwide injunction. The Supreme Court’s decision is temporary as lawsuits in the lower courts stand over the
The Commonwealth Fund published a new report that analyzes health care data in the United States and offers a cross-national comparison. The report looks at how the United States compares to wealthy countries, including Canada, Norway, and the United Kingdom, and found that the U.S. holds the highest suicide rates and lowest life expectancy, despite
On Tuesday, January 21, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation hosted the fourth annual celebration of the National Day of Racial Healing, which was established in 2017 to promote healing as a critical path for ending racial bias and creating a society in which all children can thrive. The program featured Kellogg Foundation’s President and CEO La
On Friday, January 17, the Administration issued a proposed rule change on Ensuring Equal Treatment of Faith-Based Organizations. The Administration argues that the proposed rule will provide clarity about the rights and obligations of faith-based organizations that apply for or receive federal grants and funds. The proposed rule, which must be commented on by February
Utah became the 19th state to ban LGBTQ conversion therapy, the practice, aimed at changing a patient's sexual orientation or gender identity. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) does not recognize the practice of conversion therapy and considers it unethical. Republican Gov. Gary Herbert proposed this new rule to ban conversion therapy on minors in November
CWLA submitted comments to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources, Health and Human Services Grants Regulation on the HHS notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would repeal anti-discrimination provisions as implemented during the Obama Administration before the due date of Thursday, December 19. The letter states: “We need a comprehensive national strategy
On December 13, the Boston Globe and ProPublica released their findings on the first national survey they conducted on state’s compliance with the only federal child abuse law, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA). The reporters found that not one state complied with all of the legal requirements. CAPTA requires states to comply