The Trump administration has proposed a rule change that would lead to about 3 million people losing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Under the proposal by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service, automatic qualification for SNAP benefits — formerly known as Food Stamps — would become more restrictive. The proposed … Continue reading 3 million people would lose SNAP benefits under rule proposal

California Governor Gavin Newsom gave low-income tenants protection from rent gouging, approving statewide rent control legislation today. California is only the third state to do this, following Oregon in March of this year and New York in June. The new limit will not only cap annual rent increases, it will also provide tenants protection from … Continue reading California third in nation to enforce statewide rent control

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved a modest increase in affordable housing and community development funding last week for Fiscal Year 2020. It provides $2.3 billion more than FY 2019 funding levels. This is $11.9 billion more than the Trump administration requested in its FY 2020 budget. This is good news for low-income renters, who would … Continue reading Senate committee approves modest increase in FY 2020 affordable housing spending

HUD recently announced a new initiative to help foster youth secure affordable housing. Foster youth face many challenges once they age out of the system, and one of the biggest is finding somewhere to live when they leave foster care. HUD’s new Fostering Youth to Independence (FYI) Initiative will provide rental assistance and support services … Continue reading HUD announces new housing assistance for youth leaving foster care

Separate decisions made on Wednesday by President Trump and HUD Secretary Ben Carson each put blame on California officials for their homeless population.  Carson rejected a request from California officials that included 50,000 more Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers to address homelessness. And later that day, President Trump told reporters that the Environmental Protection Agency … Continue reading Trump Administration faults CA officials on state homeless crisis