Articles and analysis on today's issues

The ripple effects of federal workforce layoffs could cause unemployment benefit claims costs to rise by 10 percent or more in two dozen states.
Current Financing Options for Home Renovations Don’t Meet the Needs of the Nation’s Aging Housing Stock Amid a housing shortage, the lack of adequate financing options for renovations is a missed opportunity to preserve and enhance existing homes.How Can “Alignment without Agreement” Help Leaders Advance Shared Agendas? A diverse group of changemakers, united by a shared vision for economic mobility in the US, modeled how healthy disagreement and debate can build effective, durable partnerships for collaborative impact.New Federal Financial Aid Policies May Jeopardize Effective State Grant Aid Programs Changes to the federal calculation of students’ ability to pay for college may cause more students to be eligible for state grant aid programs and put pressure on state budgets.Cuts to the FHA Will Hurt Households and Local Economies Across the Country Layoffs at the Federal Housing Administration will diminish the agency’s capacity to support affordable homeownership, especially in low-income, affordable, suburban, and rural communities.Staffing and Funding Cuts at HUD Would Have an Outsize Effect on Older Adults Senior households make up more than 40 percent of all households receiving US Department of Housing and Urban Development assistance. Scaling back housing supports could make it even harder for older adults with low incomes to age in place, putting them at risk of institutionalization andSweeping HHS Cuts Will Put Disabled and Older Americans’ Right to Live in Their Communities at Risk Meals on Wheels, centers for independent living, and other critical programs for seniors and disabled people across the US are now at risk, as US Department of Health and Human Services leaders dismantle the small agency that coordinates federal policy on aging and disability.