CHN just released another edition of the Human Needs Report. Read on for the latest on Congress’s final FY20 spending bills, a year-end tax package, a judge’s ruling on the ACA, efforts to preserve SNAP benefits and lower prescription drug costs, and more. You can view a PDF up the report here.  

In This Edition

The $1.4 trillion FY20 spending package includes some wins for advocates and the communities they fight for, while other parts of the package left advocates disappointed. Read on for a summary of some of the highs and lows within the legislation by department. READ MORE »

Advocates were deeply disappointed that a tax package added on to the FY20 spending deal did not include improvements to the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit. But there is hope for 2020. READ MORE »

The paid parental leave benefit will apply to roughly 2 million employees, while the Ban the Box provision could help more than 700,000 Americans. READ MORE »

It’s the latest attack by the Administration on the immigrant community: a proposal to drastically raise the cost of vital immigration benefits while reducing access to benefits for low-income and other immigrants. READ MORE »

Undocumented farmworkers and their families could have a path to legal immigration status and citizenship if landmark legislation approved earlier this month by the House becomes law. READ MORE »

The ruling raised more questions than it answered, but guarantees that the ACA will remain a potent political issue for some time to come. READ MORE »

The bill would allow the government to negotiate prescription drug prices and would put a new cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries. A Senate bill takes a different approach. READ MORE »

The rule, which is contrary to the intent of Congress, restricts states’ authority to waive the harsh time limit imposed on individuals without dependents. READ MORE »