Stateline Headlines

Abercrombie releases $48M to improve Hawaii’s public housing

Mo. bill would expand adoption subsidy recipients

Number of poor children in New Jersey is rising, study finds

Senators: Does Pennsylvania welfare system weed out terrorists?

R.I. Senate passes "Back to Work R.I."

Missouri is failing to protect at-risk children

How will the 'unbanked' buy insurance on the exchanges?

Farm bill beats back foes

Texas' struggling Rio Grande Valley pushes for Medicaid expansion

More children living in poverty

GOP pushes amendments to curb welfare abuse

Michigan Republicans seek new limits on welfare aid

Missouri social services agency loses two top officials in a week

Missouri’s social service director resigns

There was a time when ending hunger was a national goal for Republicans and Democrats

Pa. Welfare Department disputes Medicaid analysis

Michigan Republicans seek new limits on welfare aid

Two years later: progress after Joplin tornado

New York divorce law moves closer to overhaul

Food stamps and ice cream shaping farm bill in Congress

Wyoming governor signals support for homeless help

Officials still optimistic despite 4.7% rise in homeless population

Missouri bill would restrict use of welfare at liquor stores, casinos

Legislation to curb Missouri welfare fraud sent to governor

Want to judge the legislative session? Ask the kids

Lawmakers advance foster care provision

Safety Net Hospitals Won’t Be Docked in States That Don’t Expand Medicaid

Hospitals in non-expansion states feared they would be hit with bigger federal funding cuts than those in expansion states. HHS says that won’t happen – at least for the first two years.

Farm bill clears Senate Agriculture Committee

Colorado child welfare bills signed by Gov. Hickenlooper

Budget cuts to reduce unemployment benefits

Homelessness, native issues top meeting on Thomas Square

Colorado's child welfare watchdog must have independence

Dangers found in lack of safety oversight for Medicare drug benefit

NM governor to unveil newest Heart Gallery exhibit

2013 Colorado legislative session scorecard

Restrict smoking in public housing

A lifeline for the poor

Delay in Implementing Sequester Forces Deeper Unemployment Cuts

Unemployment benefits were already on the chopping block thanks to sequestration. But in three-dozen states, the pain for the long-term unemployed is even greater because states have been slow to enact the across-the-board federal cuts.

Illinois Follows Nevada with Highest Unemployment

State unemployment numbers fluctuate and once again Nevada tops the country, but the state that comes in second is new.

States Taking in More Refugees from Mideast and Asia

People fleeing persecution around the world settle in different states. Pennsylvania, for example, has become home for many refugees from Bhutan. What are the other high-destination states?

Congress May Reverse Some of Sequester’s Cuts to WIC

An effort to keep the federal government open could also deliver relief to pregnant women, mothers and young children in need of food.

Nevada No Longer Tops in Unemployment

California and Rhode Island have bumped Nevada from the top jobless spot in the nation with the highest unemployment rates among the states at 9.8 percent each. Nevada dipped to 9.7 percent.

Census: People with Disabilities More Likely to be Unemployed, Poorly Paid

New data from the Census Bureau shows a wage gap that persists even within particular occupations.

Health Care Cuts From Vaccinations to Research

Automatic cuts to federal health-care programs may make it more difficult for low-income Americans to get maternal and infant care, vaccinate their children, and receive treatment for mental illness.

Governors Promote Employment for People With Disabilities

A yearlong initiative at the National Governors Association examines the roles that states and businesses can play in finding jobs for people with disabilities.

Price tag of Sequester to States: $6 Billion

The belt-tightening from Washington begins in earnest, but states still aren’t sure just what the sequester will mean for them.

‘Cliff’ Deal Answers a Few Questions for States

Congress averted the much-feared “fiscal cliff” late Tuesday, passing a legislative package to be signed promptly by President Obama. The deal answered a few burning questions for state governments, but many still linger.

Election Year Brings Big Changes in State Policy

From battles in the legislatures to battles at the polls, Stateline reporters traveled all over the country in 2012 reporting on news from the states.

Jobless Benefits At Risk in Fiscal Cliff Debate

Amid the fervor over the fiscal cliff in Washington, there’s one federal program also facing a Dec. 31, 2012 deadline that if allowed to pass could cost unemployed Americans thousands of dollars and deprive states of crucial federal funding that’s helped them weather the worst of the Great Recession.

Concerns Mount Over State Handling of Mortgage Funds

As states spend the $2.5 billion awarded to them as part of the mortgage crisis settlement agreed to earlier this year, there’s growing concern funds aren’t going where help’s needed most.

In Massachusetts, Mobilizing Private Investment for Public Good

Massachusetts to tap private investors who want to help pay for money-saving public programs

Activists Aim to Bolster Rhode Island’s Homeless Bill of Rights

After passing the nation’s first Homeless Bill of Rights this year, Rhode Island activists are looking to defend its provisions and expand their campaign to other parts of the country.

States Struggle With Unemployment Funds Still in the Red

More than $26 billion in lingering debt and billions in mounting interest have forced a number of states to scale back unemployment benefits, raise taxes, tap general funds and even turn to the private bond market.

As Funds Dwindle, Governors Ask for Heating Help

Rising heating costs coupled with increased austerity in Congress could leave many low-income Americans out in the cold this winter, 13 state governors warned this week.

Welfare Waiver Proposal Hits Potential Roadblock

It took less than a month for the Obama administration’s move in July to grant states more flexibility in handling their welfare programs to shift from low-profile policy proposal to hot-button political issue that quickly permeated the presidential race.

One of Five Americans Struggling To Afford Food, Survey Finds

Despite record food stamp enrollment around the country and an economy considered to be on a modest upswing, the Great Recession is continuing to take its toll on many Americans, a Gallup survey found.

Heat Wave, Budget Cuts Strain Utility Safety Net

Budget cuts and a blistering hot spell wave left states short on cash this summer while tackling high energy demand. Now many worry about having enough heat when winter comes.

Still No Farm Bill, But More Assistance to Drought-Ravaged States

With Congress still at an impasse over the farm bill, the Obama Administration this week pledged $30 million more to aid farmers and ranchers hit hard by drought.

Safety Net Hospitals Imperiled by High Court Ruling

Hospitals that serve the poor thought they would be helped by the Affordable Care Act. Now it looks as if they will be hurt by it.

Pennsylvania Ends its General Assistance Program

Budget cuts force an end to Pennsylvania’s General Assistance Program

A Likely Reprieve for Food Stamp Program

The food stamp program has been facing the threat of deep reductions that would cut off benefits for millions in states all over the country. But a stalemate in Congress may stave off the pain.

Health Care Ruling Casts Doubts on Billions in State-Federal Funding

By making the federal health law’s Medicaid expansion optional for states, the U.S. Supreme Court has cast doubt on decades of established state-federal programs and billions of dollars in funding tied to them.

Are States’ Unemployment Insurance Loans Dragging Down Economies?

Most states are still paying off those unemployment benefits that went out to millions of those without work during the recession, but it’s the way some are doing it that raises concern.

States Consider Politically Fraught Welfare Waivers

States consider their options — and the politics — of the federal welfare waivers proposal.

As States Debate Medicaid Expansion, Maine Governor Looks to Cut Rolls

Maine Governor Paul LePage appears poised for a head-on collision with the Obama Administration over the issue of Medicaid eligibility. In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s health care ruling last month — the federal government cannot take away existing Medicaid funds to penalize states that refuse to expan

Food Stamp Fight on Capitol Hill

Congress is considering dramatic changes in the way states administer their food stamp programs.

Why Are Welfare Rolls Flat, While the Food Stamp Program Grows Rapidly?

Advocates for the poor say welfare programs are ill-designed for hard economic times. Some Republicans, however, don’t see welfare as broken, but instead as a model for other social initiatives.

Competing Globally: Governors Give, Get Ideas

Politicians in hyper-partisan Washington may shun any proposal from across the aisle, but some governors aren’t shy about stealing a neighboring state’s idea and giving credit, regardless of their counterpart’s political party.

Is Federal Red Tape Tying Up Innovative Job Programs?

The federal government has made money available for a new approach to unemployment, but states have to jump through bureaucratic hoops to get it.

Grandparents Need More State Help to Raise Kids

More children are living with relatives or close family friends because their parents can no longer care for them, but most states aren’t doing enough to help, a new report says.

More States Pass Drug Testing for Welfare Recipients

Tennessee is the latest state set to require drug tests of those applying for welfare benefits. But while such proposals are popular in statehouses this year, their legality is still unclear.

Eight More States Cut from Unemployment Benefits

Over the weekend, more than 200,000 people in eight states saw their federal extended unemployment benefits end

Why Are Fewer Moms Applying for Safety Net Program?

You might expect that a federal program to help needy mothers buy food for their children would be seeing increased participation these days. But the opposite is true.

Pressured Companies Leave ALEC

Outrage in the black community over the conservative group’s support for gun laws and voter ID measures helped convince six well-known businesses to leave the American Legislative Exchange Council.

Computer Matching System Could Limit Safety Net 'Double Dipping'

When people move from one state to another, they often continue to collect the same benefits in both. Technology exists to control that problem — if states can be persuaded to use it.

Best of #StateReads: Most Florida 'Stand Your Ground' Cases Deadly

This week’s extraordinary journalism about state government, tagged to #StateReads on Twitter.

Food Stamp Program Under Fire

Recent cases of million-dollar lottery winners still collecting food stamps have given fodder to critics in states and in Congress who say the program is fraught with abuse.

Jobless in 15 States to Lose Extended Benefits

Lower state unemployment rates are usually a cause for celebration. But in as many as 15 states, that good news also has triggered the loss of unemployment benefits for thousands of workers starting next month.

Do 'Medical Home' Programs Save Money?

Experts disagree about the value of one of the most highly touted cost-control initiatives in state health policy.

Connecticut's Pro-Worker Measures Leave Business Feeling Resentful

HARTFORD - Last year, Democrats in Connecticut required private companies to give paid sick days to thousands of mostly low-wage employees. This year, they are considering raising the minimum wage from $8.25 to $9.75 an hour. Business interests are crying foul.

Congress Closes 'Strip Club Loophole'

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: Congress has closed a loophole that allowed welfare recipients to spend their benefits at casinos and strip bars. But critics say states will end up spending more money to address a problem that is far from widespread.

Changes to Unemployment System Could Be in the Offing

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: Contained in a tentative congressional deal to extend the federal payroll tax cut are possible changes to the unemployment insurance program in the states.

Official Homelessness Decreases but Advocates are Skeptical

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: New data run contrary to what many might think: Overall homelessness actually dropped from 2009 to 2011 in states with high unemployment and foreclosure rates.

Governors Seek Drug Testing as Condition of Job Training

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: With millions of Americans relying on taxpayer benefits to help them find new jobs, some governors want to start by screening out substance abuse problems.

25 States Have High Child Poverty Rates

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: While child poverty rates vary dramatically across the states, nationwide, one in five children lives in poverty - even in states that might surprise you.

Minimum Wage Set to Rise in Eight States

TODAY'S TAKE: Workers in eight states will see slightly larger paychecks beginning January 1, thanks to laws requiring minimum wages to rise with inflation.

Home Heating Help Slashed by $1 Billion

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: Some residents of the Northeast will feel a deeper chill this winter as the result of a congressional decision to reduce by more than $1 billion the money sent to states to help low-income families pay their energy bills.

Overcoming a Backlog: How Texas Conquered a Mountain of Food Stamps Applications

PART THREE OF THREE: Not long ago, Texas was slower than any other state at telling people whether they could receive food stamps. Today, the state ranks near the top. Here's how Texas did it.

Anatomy of a Backlog: How Vermont Fell Behind on Adult Protective Services

PART TWO OF THREE: State systems to protect vulnerable adults from abuse and neglect are straining under growing caseloads and budgets that don't keep pace with the amount of work. Vermont's backlog of 733 open or unassigned cases highlights the depth of the challenges.

Report: Confusion Over 'Homelessness' Can Mean Less Food Aid to Needy

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: A little-known policy gives extra food stamp benefits to homeless people who live in shelters or pay to stay with a friend. But not all potential recipients know just what the definition of homelessness is.

Feds, States Target Food Stamp Fraud

TODAY'S TAKE: States can crack down on folks trying to sell their food stamps for cash on Facebook and other social media, the federal government is telling them, as part of a wider effort to curb food stamp fraud.

Food Banks Drawing Statewide Attention

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: Emergency food banks are attracting increased interest from state officials this year, but what many of them would like is more money.

States Get Chance to Experiment With Child Welfare Systems

More states will be given the opportunity to try and transform their child welfare systems with the help of federal dollars, but not without federal strings.

Protests Mark Child Poverty Forums in Kansas

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: Holding town hall meetings on ways to reduce childhood poverty might seem unlikely to offend anyone. But don't tell that to the folks in Kansas.

Oregon Food Stamp Use Surges, Leads Nation

TODAY'S TAKE: New data from the U.S. Census Bureau show that nearly a fifth of all Oregon residents received food stamps between 2009 and 2010, the highest rate in the country.

Poverty May Be Worse Than in 'Official' Count

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: A new "supplemental" measure of poverty suggests that the number of Americans living below the poverty line may be significantly higher than the figure reported officially by the U.S. Census Bureau in September.

States With Highest Poverty Levels Don't Always Have the Most on Welfare

SOCIAL POLICY BEAT: Some say new census data show that key parts of the social safety net are out of sync with where the need for it. Others say the numbers are suspect.

States Retool Food Stamp, Benefits Systems

A number of states used to make food stamp recipients pass a fingerprint test. Now all but one has stopped, to save on staff time and ease the burden on the clients.

Unemployment Overpayments: Fraud or Flawed System?

According to the federal government, states made errors in paying out 11 cents of every dollar they spent on jobless benefits last year. State officials say high error rates are largely due to clerical mistakes rather than government waste.

Obama Asks States to Encourage Entrepreneurs

ECONOMY & BUSINESS BEAT: The White House wants states to offer unemployment benefits to laid-off workers who are not looking for jobs. The catch: They must be in the process of setting up new businesses of their own.