families & the federal budget

families & the federal budget healthcare politics & policy

September 30, 2016

“ The Hyde Amendment is designed to deprive poor and minority women of the constitutional right to choose abortion.” – Justice Thurgood Marshall September 30th marks 40 years of the Hyde Amendment, the federal policy that denies access to abortion to millions who rely on government-funded health...

Rachel Roth

childcare & early education environmental health families & the federal budget family economic security healthcare MomsRising

September 22, 2016

Dance is my bestfriend. Dance has not only taught me how to be patient with myself and my body, but it has also taught me how to be patient with others. Movement for me brings peace of mind and spirit. It helps me deal with situations without using words. I was introduced to dance at a very young...

Diarra Diouf

families & the federal budget family economic security Food! healthcare Realistic & Fair Wages

September 16, 2016

On Sept. 13, the U.S. Census Bureau released important new data on poverty, median household income, and the number of Americans covered by health insurance. Below is a statement by Deborah Weinstein , executive director of the Coalition on Human Needs , responding to the new data. The official...

David Elliot

families & the federal budget family economic security Food!

September 14, 2016

Of course we know that hunger exists in America – and that an estimated 15.3 million children in our country, or one in five, live in a household where there is a real risk they will go hungry. Often studies of childhood hunger involve very young children – up to five years of age, for example, and...

David Elliot

childcare & early education families & the federal budget family economic security politics & policy

August 31, 2016

August marks the 20th anniversary of welfare reform , which created the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. As part of welfare reform, Congress also made new investments in the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) recognizing that low-income mothers need help...

Hannah Matthews

families & the federal budget family economic security politics & policy

August 24, 2016

Twenty years ago, President Bill Clinton signed the law that placed a time limit on cash assistance for poor families with children and required some degree of work, job search, or training to receive benefits. The new program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), replaced Aid to...

Debbie Weinstein

families & the federal budget healthcare military families

August 19, 2016

Imagine flying from Italy to Spain, then boarding another plane from Spain to Virginia, and finally, driving down from Virginia to Tennessee all in a matter of days just to turn around and fly out to California. Sounds exhausting, right? Now add a 5-month-old breastfeeding baby to the mix who is...

Heather Stephens

families & the federal budget family economic security Food! military families

July 18, 2016

One military mom speaks out before Congress about the struggles her family faced to make ends meet and put food on the table while her husband served in the military.

Erika Tebbens

childcare & early education families & the federal budget politics & policy

June 30, 2016

On Tuesday, June 21, the House passed by voice vote the Family First Prevention Services Act (H.R. 5456), introduced in the House by Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) and others. Many advocacy groups were supportive of this bipartisan bill, which would allow states to use federal child welfare dollars to pay for family services to prevent children from needing to enter foster care. These services could include mental health services, substance abuse services (including opioid and heroin abuse services), or in-home parenting skills programs (including individual and family therapy).

Lecia Imbery

families & the federal budget family economic security politics & policy Realistic & Fair Wages

June 28, 2016

Author's note: Earlier this month,, we discussed the June 16 event hosted by the Coalition on Human Needs, What Works – And What Doesn’t – To Reduce Poverty and Expand Opportunity . As part of that event, Melissa Boteach, vice president of the Poverty to Prosperity Program at the Center for...

David Elliot