My Message to City Leaders: Children Rely on TANF

Posted on Jun 5, 2012 in Budget Cuts, Clients, DC Budget, DC Policies and Plans, Fundraising Event, Homelessness, Housing, Poverty, TANF, Wealth Gap | 0 comments

by guest blogger “Ms. K”  I’m a mother of six, and I first got on TANF in 2005 after my husband lost his job and my income alone wasn’t enough to make our mortgage payments. We lost our home and moved in with relatives. At the time I had a newborn and the stress on my family was enormous. For various reasons, I had to leave my job and TANF assistance helped us survive. We shuffled in and out of homelessness for several years and now...

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Give Kids a Fighting Chance: Tell The Council To Delay TANF Cuts TODAY!

Posted on Jun 1, 2012 in Clients, DC Budget, DC Policies and Plans, Fundraising Event, Poverty, TANF | 0 comments

Last week, we told you about the impending cuts to TANF benefits for families that have received assistance for over 60 months. Today and Monday, help us convince the DC Council to delay these cuts and afford parents the opportunity to take advantage of the improved employment support services offered by the new TANF redesign. Councilmembers Jim Graham and Michael Brown are working with the Mayor to  ensure that families in crisis are not cut...

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TANF Cuts: Punishing Families With The Most Severe Barriers to Work

Posted on May 24, 2012 in DC Policies and Plans, Fundraising Event, Poverty, TANF | 0 comments

DC’s TANF program is currently undergoing a long overdue redesign. As part of the redesign, each parent will complete an assessment to identify her or his potential barriers to work, any health issues of family members that impact work, talents and job qualifications, educational background, and the overall needs of the family. Once a parent has been assessed, they will then receive services crafted to fit her or his individual needs and...

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Could You Survive On $3 A Day?

Posted on May 22, 2012 in DC Budget, DC Policies and Plans, Fundraising Event, Poverty, TANF, Wealth Gap | 0 comments

Budget choices speak loudly about the priorities of a city.  Last week, the DC Council – after much negotiation, review, and analysis of the Mayor’s proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2013 — voted unanimously to prioritize the well-being of low-income children in the District of Columbia.  One in 3 children in the District is poor.  Prioritizing low-income kids is vital to ensuring a brighter future for the thousands of District children...

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The DC Budget: It’s Time to Take Action

Posted on May 2, 2012 in Budget Cuts, Clients, DC Budget, DC Policies and Plans, Fundraising Event, Homelessness, Housing, Poverty, Shelter, TANF | 0 comments

You read our blog posts last week about the crisis faced by hundreds of homeless residents.  You heard directly from families struggling to protect their kids.  In exactly two weeks, the Council will vote on a budget.  Whether or not that budget responds to the needs of DC’s most vulnerable residents will depend in part on how many of us raise our voices to demand that it does.  It’s up to all of us to urge the council to pass a budget that...

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