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Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris (Getty, iStock)
The state Senate is taking another shot at making it easier to convert distressed hotels and office buildings into affordable housing.
Lawmakers have amended a bill that would enable the state’s housing regulator to transform distressed hotels and office buildings into permanently affordable housing, which would then be managed by nonprofits. Such conversions were initially contemplated as part of the state budget, but the Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposal was panned by elected officials and housing advocates for overriding local zoning rules and not creating enough affordable housing.
Now, with 10 days left in the legislative session, lawmakers are racing to enact a new measure, dubbed the Housing Our Neighbors with Dignity Program. Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, the bill’s sponsor, said in a statement that it’s a “top priority.” He pointed to the fact that the state’s budget included $100 mi
Addressing Child Poverty Beyond the Pandemic
Illustration by Ada daSilva/Getty Images
The economic impact of the pandemic has created an opportunity for the federal government to reconsider its traditional responses to poverty and unemployment.
Apr 29, 2021
In the Frontline documentary “Growing Up Poor in America,” 13-year old Ohioan Shawn and his mother and baby sister were subsisting on $885 a month in benefits during the early days of the pandemic half in food stamps and half in rent assistance for their trailer. Shawn’s mother had been diagnosed with kidney disease, yet still had to risk exposing herself to COVID-19 by “working off” hours required to receive her benefits at the local Salvation Army. Shawn tried his best to help at home as a so-called “brother-father” to his younger sibling. This included taking her to get free lunches for school-age kids at McDonald’s. “To climb out of poverty is probably a really hard struggle,” Shawn says in the course
The federal government should enact the following policy recommendations to increase affordable, accessible, and inclusive housing for all especially people with disabilities.
Unemployment rate falls another tenth to 3.1 percent
The Vermont Department of Labor has reported that the seasonally-adjusted statewide unemployment rate for February was 3.1 percent. This reflects a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate of 3.2 percent. The comparable United States rate in February was 6.2 percent, which was a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the revised January estimate. The decline is largely due to a sharp decrease in the Labor Force from January. The number of unemployed also fell. Both the Labor Force and total Employed represent about 30,000 fewer workers than a year ago, which was pre-pandemic.