Federal Programs Available to Unemployed Workers

[Excerpt] Four groups of federal programs target unemployed workers: unemployment insurance, health care assistance, job search assistance, and training. This report presents information on federal programs targeted to unemployed workers specifically, but does not attempt to discuss means-tested programs (such as Medicaid or SSI) that are available regardless of employment status. This report will be updated with major new legislation

Federal Programs Available to Unemployed Workers

[Excerpt] Four groups of federal programs target unemployed workers: income support, health care assistance, job search assistance, and training. Unemployed workers and their families may experience substantial income loss and, as a result, may qualify for a number of other federal programs that determine eligibility based on income (e.g., the Earned Income Tax Credit, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or Medicaid). This report presents information on federal programs targeted to unemployed workers specifically, but does not attempt to discuss means-tested programs. A variety of benefits may be available to unemployed workers to provide them with income support during a period of unemployment. When eligible workers lose their jobs, the Unemployment Compensation (UC) program may provide income support through the payment of UC benefits (often referred to as Unemployment Insurance, or UI, benefits). Certain groups of workers who lose their jobs on account of international competition may qualify for additional or supplemental income support through Trade Adjustment Act (TAA) programs. If an unemployed worker is not eligible to receive UC benefits and the worker’s unemployment may be directly attributed to a declared major disaster, a worker may be eligible to receive Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) benefits. Two federal laws may aid unemployed workers in the purchase of health insurance. The first, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA), allows unemployed workers in certain circumstances to purchase continued health insurance coverage. The second, the Health Care Tax Credit (HCTC), allows certain TAA and Alternative TAA (for older workers) participants to receive an advanceable and refundable tax credit for purchasing health insurance. Federal support for Americans seeking assistance to obtain, retain, or change employment is undertaken by a national system of local One-Stop Career Centers (One-Stops) that were established by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA, P.L. 105-220). A variety of services and partner programs — notably including UC and TAA — are located within or linked to One-Stops, which primarily provide job search assistance, career counseling, labor market information, and other employment services. Core labor exchange services (matching job seekers and employers) are provided by the U.S. Employment Service, which was first established by the Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933 and most recently amended under Title III of WIA. In addition to ES, Title I of WIA authorizes resources for similar core and intensive employment services for youth, adults, dislocated workers, and targeted populations. WIA Title I is also the nation’s central job training legislation, providing funds for traditional, on-the-job, customized, and other forms of training to individuals unable to obtain or retain employment through other services. This report will be updated as new legislation warrants

Federal Programs Available to Unemployed Workers

[Excerpt] Four groups of federal programs target unemployed workers: unemployment insurance programs, health care assistance, job search assistance, and training. This report describes these programs, how they interact with each other, and their funding. Unemployed workers and their families may experience substantial income loss. If the unemployed worker’s family income is low enough, there are a number of means-tested benefits and programs for which the unemployed worker’s family might qualify (e.g., Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, SSI, or Medicaid). Eligibility for such benefits is not conditional on an individual’s current employment status. This report does not attempt to discuss these means-tested benefits and programs

Implications of Federal Programs for College Libraries

published or submitted for publicatio

Federal Programs that Protect Young Children's Health

An investment in children's health is an investment in our country's economic health. Infants and toddlers, whose bodies and brains are in their most rapid period of growth, are uniquely vulnerable to even shortterm deprivation. Ensuring that they have the basic physiologic building blocks for healthy bodies and minds is not only the right thing to do -- it is the smart thing to do. Research has shown that children who suffer from poor nutrition, unstable housing and inadequate home heating have a greater likelihood of poor health, a higher risk of developmental delays and, in some cases, an increased risk of hospitalization

Federal Post-Disaster Recovery: A Review of Federal Programs

Summarizes discussions and recommendations from a January 2010 roundtable on removing barriers in federal programs to timely, effective, and flexible recovery efforts and improving partnerships with states, localities, nonprofits, and the private sector

THE FUTURE OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS FOR SOUTHERN COMMODITIES

Political Economy,

Child Welfare: An Overview of Federal Programs and Their Current Funding

Child welfare services are intended to prevent the abuse or neglect of children; ensure that children have safe, permanent homes; and promote the well-being of children and their families. As the U.S. Constitution has been interpreted, states have the primary obligation to ensure the welfare of children and their families. At the state level, the child welfare “system” consists of public child protection and child welfare workers, private child welfare and social service workers, state and local judges, prosecutors, and law enforcement personnel. These representatives of various state and local entities assume interrelated roles while carrying out child welfare activities, including investigating allegations of child abuse and neglect, providing services to families to ensure children’s safety in the home, removing children from their homes when that is necessary for their safety, supervising and administering payments for children placed in foster care, and ensuring permanency planning and regular case review for children in foster care. Most federal dollars dedicated to child welfare purposes are provided to state child welfare agencies, and federal involvement in child welfare is primarily tied to this financial assistance. In recent years, Congress has appropriated just above or below $8 billion in federal support dedicated to child welfare purposes. As a condition of receiving these foster care and other child welfare program funds, states must typically provide nonfederal funds of between 20Apart from the federal funding provided for programs described in this report, state child welfare agencies tap significant program resources—as much as$5.6 billion—from other federal funding streams, including the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant, the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG), and Medicaid. These federal funding streams have federal statutory goals, or support activities, that overlap with child welfare purposes. However, they are not solely dedicated to child welfare purposes and states are not necessarily required to use them for those specific purposes. Neither do states need to meet federal requirements specific to the conduct of their child welfare programs as a condition of receiving this “nondedicated” funding. This report begins with a review of federal appropriations activity in FY2014 as it relates to child welfare programs, including the effect of the automatic spending cuts, known as sequestration. The bulk of the report provides a short description of each federal child welfare program, including its purpose and recent (FY2012-FY2014) funding levels

Federal Programs for Addressing Low-Income Housing Needs: A Policy Primer

Provides an overview of federal rental assistance programs, their scope, and their limitations, with data on recipients by type, region, family income and structure, and race/ethnicity. Outlines policy implications for children and community development

Vulnerable Youth: Background and Policies

[Excerpt] This report first provides an overview of the youth population and the increasing complexity of transitioning to adulthood for all adolescents. It also provides a separate discussion of the concept of “disconnectedness,” as well as the protective factors youth can develop during childhood and adolescence that can mitigate poor outcomes. Further, the report describes the evolution of federal youth policy, focusing on three time periods, and provides a brief overview of current federal programs targeted at vulnerable youth. The report then discusses the challenges of coordinating federal programs for youth, as well as federal legislation and initiatives that promote coordination among federal agencies and support programs with a positive youth development focus