Archives: Voices

Human Needs Report: Appropriations, Child Nutrition, Zika Funding and More

CHN just released our latest edition of the Human Needs Report, our regular newsletter on national policy issues affecting low-income and vulnerable populations. This edition includes articles on appropriations, the GOP poverty plan, child nutrition reauthorization, funding to fight Zika, and more. See below for the full analysis and links to each piece in the report….

Five Things You Need to Know About Payday Lending

Editor’s Note: This piece was originally posted on Medium on June 7, 2016 by Stop Payday Predators, a project of the Stop the Payday Loan Debt Trap Coalition, a national coalition of hundreds of groups and consumers seeking to stop the debt trap caused by payday, car title, and installment loans. CHN…

Rhetoric Versus Real Impact of Proposals to Reduce Poverty

Editor’s note: This piece was originally published on RESULTS’ blog on Tuesday, June 7. RESULTS is a co-sponsor of an event CHN is hosting on Thursday, June 16 at 1:00pm ET entitled, “What Works – and What Doesn’t – to Reduce Poverty and Expand Opportunity.” The event will be an evidence-based discussion…

Vague Pronouncements Do Not Reduce Poverty

Editor’s Note: In addition to the following piece from CHN’s Executive Director Deborah Weinstein, please see CHN’s resource page on what works – and what doesn’t – to reduce poverty and expand opportunity. The page contains information about CHN’s upcoming event on this topic, as well as CHN’s statement and statements and…

Head Smacker: Rental Assistance to Families with Children Falls as Need Rises

Earlier this week, we discussed a new report showing that affordable housing is out of reach for millions of renters across the US. And higher rents, especially when combined with flat wages and an economic recovery that hasn’t reached low-income families, means an increased need for rental assistance. Unfortunately, however,…

Human Needs Hero Reception: July 19, 2016

The Coalition on Human Needs invites you to the 13th Annual Human Needs Hero Reception Honoring: Ruth Flower and Wade Henderson Tuesday, July 19th, 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. AFL-CIO, 815 16th St. NW, Washington, DC Please join us in honoring these amazing progressive leaders: Ruth Flower: Former Associate Executive…

SNAP, TANF and a Better Path

“The nation’s core economic security programs are highly effective: they cut poverty almost in half, improve nutrition and health care for millions of people, and promote work.” This is how Olivia Golden, executive director of the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), began her testimony to the House Ways…

Fact of the Week: 1 in 3 Moms Struggle to Pay for Diapers

Everyone knows babies go through a lot of diapers. But for low-income families, the cost of diapers often forces them to go without another necessity, like food or heat. For many, it can force them to leave babies in soiled diapers longer than they’d like. This can lead to physical…

Great News on Overtime Rules

Great news! The Department of Labor today announced major changes to federal overtime regulations that will benefit millions of low- and middle-income workers. Currently, salaried workers who earn as little as $455 a week or $23,660 a year can be excluded from receiving overtime pay when working more than 40 hours…

A hug from Paul Ryan

Hugs are nice. But hunger advocates such as Tianna Gaines-Turner want policy-makers and members of Congress to know that as nice as a hug is, it does not put food on the table, workers in good-paying jobs, or families in affordable, secure housing. On Monday, Gaines-Turner, who lives in Philadelphia…