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She, like 2,000 other state residents, is awaiting approval for aid through a community advocacy program. Resumed funding for LIHEAP is dependent on an appropriations bill used to fund the government. “We had calls during our latest heat wave, and our agencies just don’t have the LIHEAP funding,” Sarensen said. Unlike those so-called entitlements, LIHEAP funding can be depleted without helping everyone who qualifies. Neither Vice President Kamala Harris nor former President Donald Trump has mentioned direct utility or weatherization aid in their campaigns for the White House.

Persons: Cathy McCorkle, she’s, ”, “, won’t, Mark Wolfe, “ There’s, Wolfe, LIHEAP, Bridget Bennett, Brian Sarensen, Sarensen, ” Sarensen, That’s, “ It’s, Stephanie Ashley, We’ve, Ashley, “ We’ve, We’re, we’re, ” “, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Karen Lusson Organizations: U.S, Low Income, Energy Assistance, National Energy Assistance, Association, Center for Energy, Opera, Washington, Getty Images, Commerce Department, Law, SNAP, Washington , D.C, House Republicans, White, U.S . Treasury Department, National Consumer Law Locations: Mount Holly , North Carolina, San Diego, Death Valley, Calif, Washington, Phoenix, Oregon, North Carolina, Washington ,

☆ Philadelphia is experimenting with guaranteed income pilots for pregnant people and housing insecure families
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-23 | by ( Allie Kelly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Read previewPhiladelphia has joined the national guaranteed basic income wave — with a focus on pregnant people and families experiencing housing insecurity. AdvertisementPhilly Joy Bank hopes to improve birth outcomesThe Philly Joy Bank pilot will offer $1,000 a month for 18 months to pregnant people beginning in their second trimester. It is a partnership between the Philadelphia Department of Public Health and the Philadelphia City Fund — with funding coming from the city and various foundations. Guaranteed income programs like Philly Joy Bank "should be the standard, not the exception," Coaxum said. Participants will pay about 30% of their personal monthly income toward housing, then they will receive guaranteed income to cover any remaining balance.

Persons: —, ALICE, Nia Coaxum, It's, Coaxum, Dawn Benson, Benson, Noah Sheidlower Organizations: Service, Philly Joy Bank, Business, Nonprofit United, Philly, Bank, Health, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Denver, Philadelphia Community Action, Philadelphia City Fund, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, city's Department of Public Health, Philadelphia Housing Development Corporation, University of Pennsylvania, BI Locations: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, America, Area, Chicago, San Antonio , New York City, Tioga, Cobbs

☆ A Bay Area county gave low-income moms of color $1,000 a month. 2 years later, more families could put food on the table and afford stable housing.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-21 | by ( Allie Kelly | Noah Sheidlower | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

With basic income, families had more housing and food securityUpTogether reported that basic income positively impacted participants' financial stability, well-being, and food and housing security. The percentage of participants with housing stability rose from 45% to 60%, while the participants reported an 8% decline in homelessness. More basic income programs are aimed at parentsMarin County's pilot isn't the only basic program to focus on low-income mothers. A basic income program in New Mexico also gave $500 a month to mixed-citizenship status immigrant families with children. Compared to federal safety nets like SNAP, Medicaid, or rental vouchers, basic income allows families more flexible spending.

Persons: —, Claudia Muralles, San Francisco Bay — Muralles, Muralles, UpTogether, Community Action Marin, Marin County's, Flint, Jesús Gerena, Marin, Gerena Organizations: Service, Marin County , California —, Business, UpTogether, Marin Community Foundation, Marin Housing, Community Action, Children, Child Tax, Local, Medicaid Locations: Marin County , California, San Francisco Bay, Marin, Marin County, America, Flint , Michigan, New Mexico, GBI

☆ Biden administration looks to forgive student debt of borrowers in hardship
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Annie Nova | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks to United Auto Workers members at the UAW's Community Action Program legislative conference in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 24, 2024. The Biden administration announced on Wednesday that it will try to deliver student loan forgiveness to borrowers experiencing financial hardship. After the Supreme Court struck down President Joe Biden's executive order to cancel up to $20,000 in student debt for tens of millions of Americans, his administration has searched for ways to cancel the debt using existing legal authority. In what has become known as Biden's Plan B for student loan forgiveness, the president has turned to the rulemaking process. The Biden administration has been under pressure, however, to expand its aid to borrowers in financial hardship, too.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, Joe Biden's, Sen, Elizabeth Warren, Education Miguel Cardona, Jan Organizations: United Auto Workers, Washington , D.C, Department, Education, U.S . Department Locations: Washington ,

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks to United Auto Workers members at the UAW's Community Action Program (CAP) legislative conference in Washington, U.S., January 24, 2024. The United Auto Workers union is endorsing President Joe Biden for reelection this year, UAW President Shawn Fain announced Wednesday at a union conference in Washington, D.C."Today, I'm proud to stand up here with your International Executive Board and announce that the UAW is endorsing Joe Biden for President of the United States," Fain said. "We will reelect Joe Biden." "Look, I kept my commitment to be the most pro-union president ever," Biden said following the endorsement announcement. Biden threw his own punches at Trump, who he expects to face in a general election rematch in November.

Persons: Joe Biden, Shawn Fain, Fain, reelect Joe Biden, shouldn't, Biden, Nikki Haley, Trump, Donald Trump Organizations: United Auto Workers, International, UAW, Democratic, New, Trump, South Carolina Gov, Republican Locations: Washington , U.S, Washington ,, United States, New Hampshire, Michigan, Detroit, America

LONDON, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Chilean copper miner Antofagasta (ANTO.L) last week inked the first major 2024 concentrates supply deal with China's Jinchuan Group. Indeed, it's far from certain there will be a single benchmark for next year due to a shifting copper concentrates landscape. Annual "benchmark" copper smelter treatment chargesSPLIT BENCHMARK? Other members of China's Copper Smelters Purchase Team, a grouping of the country's biggest players, have rejected Jinchuan's terms as a benchmark. Its new Manyar copper smelter will start ramping up from May.

Persons: Freeport, Chen Yunian, Jinchuan, it's, Jan Harvey Organizations: China's Jinchuan, TC, Freeport McMoRan, HK, Study, China's, Copper, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Antofagasta, Jinchuan, Freeport, Indonesia, Panama, Peru, Chile, China, Jiangxi, Canada, Botswana

The requirement could raise wages by as much as $10,000 for Head Start teachers over the next seven years, the agency estimates. Head Start teacher turnover has doubled over the last decade, with the federal government estimating 1 out of every 5 Head Start teachers left their classroom last year. As many as 275,000 infants, toddlers and preschoolers are on waitlists nationwide, according to the National Head Start Association. Taxpayers spend about $12 billion for Head Start to serve roughly 1 million children. Daniel was “jumping up and down” when she read the administration's proposal to raise wages and add heartier benefits for Head Start staff.

Persons: Biden, Anna Markowitz, ”, That's, Renee Daniel, Daniel, we’re, ” Daniel, Katie Hamm, ” Hamm, Markowitz, “ It’s, ” Markowitz Organizations: WASHINGTON, Human Services, Start, University of California Los, Start Association, Taxpayers, Cincinnati, Hamilton, Community Action Agency, Head Start, Amazon, Human, UCLA Locations: University of California Los Angeles, Cincinnati

☆ US appeals court scraps Sempra's Port Arthur LNG emissions permit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Curtis Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsHOUSTON, Nov 15 (Reuters) - A U.S. court has removed an emissions permit for Sempra's (SRE.N) Port Arthur LNG export terminal in Texas, but the company said construction of the facility will continue for now. The approximately 13.5 million-metric-tons-per-annum (mtpa) Port Arthur plant has approval to export LNG to both Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and non-FTA countries, including Europe, and is part of the U.S. LNG expansion to meet growing global demand for the superchilled gas. The decision sends the Port Arthur LNG permit application back to the TCEQ for new evaluation. Investment firm KKR (KKR.N) owns a 20% stake in Sempra Infrastructure while Sempra Energy owns 70% and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority owns 10%. John Beard, executive director of the Port Arthur Community Action Network, which brought the lawsuit challenging TCEQ, said of the ruling: “We’ve won by standing up for Port Arthur communities of color to breathe free from toxic pollution.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Port Arthur, Sempra, John Beard, “ We’ve, –, Biden, Alex Munton, Munton, Curtis Williams, Deepa Babington, Stephen Coates Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Port Arthur, Free, U.S, U.S ., Appeals, Fifth Circuit, Texas Commission, Environmental, Rio, Rio Grande LNG, Port, Sempra Infrastructure, ConocoPhillips, Investment, KKR, Sempra Energy, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Port Arthur Community Action Network, Global Gas & LNG Research, Rapidan Energy, Thomson Locations: Port, Texas, Europe, Rio Grande, Port Arthur, Abu Dhabi, Houston

NEW YORK (AP) — Palestinian artist Nida Sinnokrot, one of 18 artists receiving the 2023 Soros Arts Fellowships from the Open Society Foundations on Tuesday, says that art provides hope and resilience, even in the midst of war. This year's class of Soros Arts Fellows is the largest since the program launched in 2018. This is the launchpad of something new — a new realm of direct action in the arts.”Molemo Moiloa also plans to incorporate community action in her art project in Johannesburg, South Africa, for her Soros Arts fellowship. “One of the reasons I still feel hope is that there is powerful solidarity around the world that embraces this ethos,” he said. “And that’s what’s so amazing about this year’s (Soros Arts Fellows) and their communities.

Persons: Nida Sinnokrot, “, ”, Sinnokrot, Tatiana Mouarbes, George Soros, Alex — Mouarbes, Jordan Weber, ” “, Weber, ” Molemo Moiloa, Moiloa, Nelson Mandela's, we’ve, it’s, Fellows, Cannupa Hanska Luger, Carolina Caycedo, Chemi, Dalton Paula, Deborah Jack, Kenan Darwich, Sami Rustom, Ixchel Tonāntzin, Martha Atienza, Molemo Moiloa, Mónica de Miranda, Omar Berrada, Rijin Sahakian, Sari Dennise, Yto Barrada Organizations: Open, Massachusetts Institute, Technology’s, Technology, Soros Arts Fellows, Open Society, Culture, Society, Soros Arts, South, Soros, Fehras, Associated, Lilly Endowment Inc, AP Locations: Palestinian, York, ”, Detroit, Johannesburg, South Africa, Israel, Palestine, Guinea, Hidatsa, Lakota, United States, Carolina, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Brazil, St, Maarten, Syria, Germany, Philippines, Portugal, Morocco, Iraq, Mexico

☆ A government shutdown would be a 'gut punch' to Head Start programs that serve 10,000 low income children
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-30 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Head Start programs, which serve over 10,000 children across the nation, would lose funding. If the shutdown isn't averted, Head Start programs serving more than 10,000 children would immediately lose federal funding, including Ferguson's program. This is a particular concern with nearly 20% of Head Start staff positions vacant nationwide, according to the National Head Start Association. The 16-day October 2013 shutdown was the last to hit Head Start hard, affecting 19,000 children and shuttering programs in several states. Laketia Washington, a mother of eight whose 3- and 5-year-olds attend Head Start programs in Tallahassee, Florida, lamented the turmoil as she rang up customers at a discount store.

Persons: —, Monette Ferguson, Ferguson, Tommy Sheridan, Sheridan, Bobby Kogan, Lori Milam, she's, Philip Shelly, Nikki Budzinski, Maureen Coffey, Lynn Karoly, John, Laura Arnold, what's Organizations: Service, Alliance for Community Empowerment, Start Association, Sunday, Center for American Progress, West Virginia, Democratic U.S ., Start, Center for American, Rand Corp, Tim Center, Capital Area Community Action Agency Locations: Connecticut, Florida , Alabama , Connecticut, Georgia , Massachusetts, South Carolina, Illinois, Minnesota , New York, Maine, Houston, Florida, Laketia Washington, Tallahassee , Florida

If the shutdown isn’t averted, Head Start programs serving more than 10,000 children would immediately lose federal funding, including Ferguson's program. That's what worries Lori Milam, executive director of the West Virginia Head Start. This is a particular concern with nearly 20% of Head Start staff positions vacant nationwide, according to the National Head Start Association. Another pot of COVID-19 relief funds that helped Head Start ran out in the spring. Laketia Washington, a mother of eight whose 3- and 5-year-olds attend Head Start programs in Tallahassee, Florida, lamented the turmoil as she rang up customers at a discount store.

Persons: Monette Ferguson, “, ”, Ferguson, Tommy Sheridan, Sheridan, Bobby Kogan, Lori Milam, she's, Philip Shelly, Nikki Budzinski, Maureen Coffey, “ It’s, Lynn Karoly, John, Laura Arnold, what’s Organizations: KANSAS CITY, Alliance for Community Empowerment, Start Association, Sunday, Center for American Progress, West Virginia, Democratic U.S ., Start, Rand Corp, Tim Center, Capital Area Community Action Agency Locations: KANSAS, Mo, Connecticut, Florida , Alabama , Connecticut, Georgia , Massachusetts, South Carolina, Illinois, Minnesota , New York, Maine, Houston, Florida, Laketia Washington, Tallahassee , Florida

☆ London's solar street thrives on people power
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Natalie Thomas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] Roofers install solar panels on the roof of renegade artists Dan Edelstyn and Hilary Powell's house in London, Britain, June 6, 2023. Dan Edelstyn and Hilary Powell raise funds to install solar panels on the rooftops of all the houses on their street. After raising 113,000 pounds ($141,000), partly through crowd-funding publicised by sleeping on their roof for three cold, winter weeks, artist couple Dan Edelstyn and Hilary Powell have arranged for solar panels to be installed on dozens of houses on their street. Households powered by solar panel-derived electricity draw less power from the national grid, cutting energy bills, and they can also sell any excess energy back. Industry analysts say community projects tend to be more efficient than individual solar installations as costs fall with scale.

Persons: Dan Edelstyn, Hilary Powell's, Hilary Powell, Anna Gordon LONDON, Powell, Ejaz Hussein, It's, Rebecca Dibb, Ofgem, Edelstyn, Sachin Ravikumar, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Industry, Octopus Energy, Community Energy, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, Waltham Forest

LONDON, May 10 (Reuters) - The global copper market is facing another year of supply deficit, according to the International Copper Study Group (ICSG). The Group's April forecast is for a supply shortfall of 114,000 tonnes this year after a 431,000-tonne deficit in 2022. The calculation could easily be thrown off, since it is based on changes in visible inventory combined with China's net imports of refined metal. Last year's elevated net imports served to inflate China's apparent usage. A 16.4% slump in net imports over the first quarter of this year will do the reverse.

☆ This Isn't What Millennial Middle Age Was Supposed to Look Like - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Jessica Grose | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +25 min

Things have been difficult for her family, she says, but one thing she isn’t worried about: a midlife crisis, looming just over the horizon. One of our questions was about whether they had experienced a midlife crisis and how they would define the term. Many people said they felt they couldn’t be having a midlife crisis, because there was no bourgeois numbness to rebel against. “Who has midlife crisis money?”The traditional midlife crisis, as presented in popular culture, at least, unfolds amid suburban ennui. We just increase our Lexapro.”Was the midlife crisis ever even real?

☆ Where New York’s Asian Neighborhoods Shifted to the Right
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Jason Kao | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +15 min

In last year’s governor’s election, voters in Asian neighborhoods across New York City sharply increased their support for Republicans. And predominantly Asian areas — precincts with a majority of eligible Asian voters — have undergone a pivotal shift. Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Note: The precinct in Kensington is mostly Indian and Bangladeshi. Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Flushing, 2022 Murray Hill Bayside Flushing Northern Blvd. Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area Detail area state senate race Bensonhurst Sunset Park McDonald Ave. 65th St. New Utrecht Ave. 8th Ave.

☆ Environmentalists sue to stop U.S. oil and gas auction off Alaska coast
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Industry Insight | Saw Law Firms Move Past The Pandemic Into A More Client-Focused Service Environment | Thomson Reuters Institute | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 21 (Reuters) - Environmental groups sued the Biden administration on Wednesday to block a sale of oil and gas drilling rights off the coast of Alaska that is scheduled for next week. Interior had scrapped the Cook Inlet sale this year before the IRA passed, citing a lack of industry interest. "Cook Inlet is already experiencing severe effects of climate change, and new oil and gas leasing will only magnify those harms," the complaint said. Cook Inlet stretches 180 miles (290 km) from Anchorage to the Gulf of Alaska. Operating oil and gas platforms in the area are all in state waters, but oil production has declined substantially since peaking in the 1970s.

☆ See a new tiny-home community where former inmates can live for free to get back on their feet
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Jordan Pandy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A New Jersey nonprofit built a tiny-home community for recently released inmates. The nonprofit hopes that the tiny homes will establish a sense of community and better integrate participants back into society. Paul Taggines, Chief Operating Officer of The Kintock Group, showing off one of the tiny homes. Pallet has built tiny homes in 11 different states across the country from California to Massachusetts. While there is no regulated size, typically tiny homes are less than 600 square feet.

The hashtag went viral in 2017, but Tarana Burke first started the movement back in 2006. Tarana Burke: My name is Tarana Burke, and I'm the founder of the #MeToo movement. #MeToo is a movement that was founded in 2006 to support survivors of sexual violence, in particular black and brown girls, who were in the program that we were running. We were encountering numbers of girls who were disclosing sexual violence. And sometimes they didn't even know that it was sexual violence.

They heat their home mainly with fuel oil, which costs them $4.57 a gallon, up from around $3.10 last year. Duke Energy customers in Indiana were recently hit with a 7% hike after a temporary 16% increase just this summer. Fuel oil customers often must pay for deliveries up front, and many suppliers have been less willing to offer payment plans because of market volatility, experts said. “I don’t have savings, period.”Brickey and Parks applied for LIHEAP assistance through District Three, a government cooperative geared toward senior citizens in southwest Virginia. They had three months of electricity paid for this past summer, along with $800 worth of fuel oil assistance last winter.

☆ Thought you paid a lot to heat your home last year? Wait until this winter
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-24 | by ( Tami Luhby | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The couple is now paying $472 a month on the budget plan, up from around $290 a month last winter. Jason Bell may have to take on a second part-time job, on top of his full-time position, to afford his heating bills this winter. Those who heat with natural gas are facing the largest spike, with their cost for the winter heating season expected to soar 34.3% to $952, the association said. The tab for heating oil is expected to jump 12.8% to $2,115. Oil prices, which spiked last winter after Russia invaded Ukraine in February, are declining but are still higher than they were last year.

That spike in demand pushed prices higher, and was exacerbated by the retirement of coal-fired and nuclear plants, in favor of electric generators. Meanwhile, natural gas production has been slow to come back online after waves of shutdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic. Today, the price of natural gas is at levels not seen in more than a decade. The company said the increases are directly related to higher natural gas prices. "For many struggling families, higher prices can mean being forced to choose between heat, food or medication," the association said.

Find out what your state provides for first-time homebuyers:Programs in the NortheastConnecticutThe Connecticut Housing Finance Authority gives loans for down payment assistance. Programs in the SoutheastAlabamaThe Alabama Housing Finance Association has down payment assistance programs for low-to-moderate income earners, and a tax credit program that can be combined with down payment assistance. If you're buying a home in Louisville, you might qualify for a down payment assistance loan from the local government. WashingtonThe Washington State Housing Finance Commission has several down payment assistance programs that will loan you up to $10,000. The lender is also the one who will approve and process any applications for down payment assistance, closing cost assistance, or tax credits.

Persons: you've, you'll, Massachusetts MassHousing, SONYMA, There's, Kenner, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Louis County, haven't Organizations: Northeast, Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, Housing Development Fund, Housing Authority, Maine MaineHousing, New Hampshire New Hampshire Housing, New, New Hampshire Housing, New Jersey Housing, Mortgage Finance Agency, New York Mortgage Agency, Pennsylvania Housing Finance Authority, Housing Network of, Vermont Housing Finance Agency, Southeast, Alabama Housing Finance Association, Arkansas, Finance Authority, of Columbia, Washington DC, DC Housing Finance Agency, Florida Housing Finance Corporation, Georgia, Georgia Department of Community Affairs, . Kentucky, Kentucky Housing Corporation, Louisiana Housing Corporation, Maryland Department of Housing, Community Development, Baltimore City . Mississippi The Mississippi Home Corporation, North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, South Carolina Housing, South, Tennessee Housing, Agency, Virginia Virginia Housing, Virginia Department of Housing, West, West Virginia The West, West Virginia The West Virginia Housing, Fund, Midwest Illinois, Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago, Illinois Housing, Authority, Indiana, Indiana Housing, Community Development Authority, Iowa Finance Authority, Kansas Kansas Housing, Housing Development Authority, Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, Missouri Housing Development Commission, Community Action Agency of St, Nebraska Investment Finance Authority, North Dakota Housing Finance Agency, Ohio Housing Finance Agency, South Dakota Housing Development Authority, Wisconsin Housing, Economic Development Authority, Southwest Arizona The, Southwest Arizona The Arizona Industrial Development Authority, New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority, Oklahoma, Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency, Texas The, Affordable Housing Corporation, Texas Department of Housing, Community Affairs, Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, Financial Agency, Southern, Southern California Home, Colorado Housing, Finance, Aurora, Hawaii Housing Finance, Development Corporation . Idaho, Idaho Housing, Finance Association, Montana Montana Housing, Nevada Housing Division, Oregon, Oregon Oregon Housing, Community Services, Utah Housing Corporation . Washington, Washington State Housing Finance Commission, Wyoming Community Development Authority, FHA Locations: Northeast Connecticut, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire New Hampshire, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Trenton, New York The State, Pennsylvania, Centre County, Rhode, Housing Network of Rhode Island, Vermont, Southeast Alabama, Arkansas, Washington, Florida, Georgia, Gwinnett County, Kentucky, Louisville, Louisiana, New Orleans, Maryland, Baltimore, Baltimore City . Mississippi, North Carolina, Carolina, South Carolina, Lexington, Tennessee, Virginia Virginia, West Virginia, West Virginia The West Virginia, Illinois, Indianapolis, Iowa, Kansas Kansas, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Louis, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Southwest Arizona The Arizona, Mexico, Oklahoma City, Texas, Texas The Texas, West Alaska, Alaska, California, Southern California, Los Angeles County, Orange County . Colorado, Colorado, Aurora, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana Montana, Nevada, Oregon Oregon, Utah, Wyoming

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