Articles and analysis on today's issues

Federal cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program could cause some DC-area families to lose an average of $187 in monthly benefits.
How the White House Is Continuing to Prioritize Equity Annual federal equity actions for 2023 show a continuing commitment to fairness in program design and development, with the new plans prioritizing distributional and structural fairness.Expanding Access to Home Equity Could Improve the Financial Security of Older Homeowners Many older homeowners have accumulated substantial home equity in recent years, but they have limited opportunities to extract it. Simplifying the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program could help increase older homeowners’ access to home equity and alleviate housing cost burden.Three Trends in LGBTQ+ Homeownership Gaps Underscore Research and Policy Needs Understanding these gaps is the first step in breaking down barriers and ensuring LGBTQ+ people have equal access to homeownership.Spurring Housing Development Near Transit through Federally Funded Land Acquisition Although cities have become more adept at transit-oriented development in recent years, almost nine times as many units were added far from transit stations as near to them over the past two decades.How Policymakers Can Use Measures of Mobility from Poverty Affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic With the COVID-19 pandemic causing so many disruptions to people’s health and well-being, it’s tempting to dismiss data from before and during the pandemic as unrepresentative, but policymakers can still glean insights from data collected during the pandemic and trends.Black Homeownership Increased Slightly during the Pandemic, but High Interest Rates Threaten to Further Widen Racial Homeownership Gaps Better-targeted policies and programs could boost Black homeownership and reduce racial homeownership disparities, despite high interest rates.