Cash and Safety Net Melissa Johnson Reports Worker Justice Career Pathways Can Strengthen Georgia Families June 15, 2017 / January 14, 2020 by Melissa Johnson Georgia parents work hard every day to put food on the table and provide a brighter future for their children. Yet more than one in three of the state’s working families with children are likely to find themselves struggling to make ends meet due to low income.[1] Nearly 392,000 working families with children are considered […] Read more » economy Jobs Melissa Johnson Report Safety Net TANF
Claire Suggs Reports School District Funding Squeeze Continues June 8, 2017 / January 14, 2020 by Claire Suggs School districts across Georgia face financial challenges that limit their ability to meet the needs of all students, especially when they’re from low-income families. This jeopardizes Georgia’s economic future. The state needs a skilled workforce to attract and develop industries with jobs that pay well. Tomorrow’s workforce is in classrooms across the state today. Instead […] Read more » Claire Suggs Education K-12 Legislature public-schools State Health Benefit Plan
Blog Higher Education Jennifer Lee Knock Down Barriers Between Georgia Students and College Graduation May 31, 2017 / January 14, 2020 by Jennifer Lee I attended my dad’s Ph.D. graduation as a kid. Long before cell phones gained popularity, my mom sent me on a mission to pass a message to my dad about where we would meet after the ceremony. I walked up to the ropes separating the graduates from their guests and got down on my hands […] Read more » Education graduates graduation rates Higher Education Jennifer Lee
Blog Budget and Taxes Taifa Smith Butler Many Georgia Families Get Raw Deal in President’s Callous Budget May 26, 2017 / January 14, 2020 by Taifa Smith Butler Georgians stand to lose a lot if the president’s proposed budget released this week is approved. Not only does the plan jeopardize Georgia’s fiscal stability, it also would diminish the ability of millions of Georgians to meet basic living standards, such as putting food on the table, maintaining a roof over their heads and accessing […] Read more » Budget Budget & Taxes Budget Cuts health health-care K-12 medicaid Taifa Smith Butler
Cash and Safety Net Fact Sheets Melissa Johnson Work Requirements, Time Limits Constrain Food Assistance May 25, 2017 / January 14, 2020 by Melissa Johnson This year the state informed nearly 12,000 Georgians that they were at risk of being cut off from food assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, commonly called food stamps). Georgia terminated this help for some because of time limits built into the program’s rules. Observers often refer to these time limits as the […] Read more » Food Assistance food stamps Melissa Johnson Safety Net SNAP
Blog Budget and Taxes Wesley Tharpe This Year’s Flurry of Tax Breaks Highlights Need for Better Process May 19, 2017 / January 14, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe Georgia is falling behind the majority of states including several of its Southeast neighbors when it comes to making sure tax breaks deliver taxpayers a good return on investment. Twenty-seven states plus the District of Columbia now maintain policies that subject business tax breaks and other economic development subsidies to some sort of objective review […] Read more » Budget & Taxes Governor Deal State Taxes tax breaks Wesley Tharpe
Blog Budget and Taxes Health Justice Melissa Johnson Uplifting Georgia Moms this Mother’s Day May 11, 2017 / January 14, 2020 by Melissa Johnson Mother’s Day invites us to reflect on the importance of mothers and show our appreciation for them. One of the best ways Georgia can demonstrate commitment to moms is to bolster their economic opportunities and provide more tools to help their families succeed. In 2016, the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute released an Economic Opportunity […] Read more » EITC health medicaid
Inclusive Economy for Immigrants Reports Worker Justice Support Adult English Language Education to Invest in Future May 4, 2017 / March 18, 2021 by Melissa Johnson One in five Georgia children lives with at least one immigrant parent and nearly half of immigrants in Georgia struggle to speak English. When parents struggle to speak English, it not only hurts their ability to bring home higher pay to support their families, it also limits their involvement in their children’s education. This reduces […] Read more »
Blog Higher Education Jennifer Lee Georgia Lawmakers Press for More Lottery Dollars for Education April 28, 2017 / January 15, 2020 by Jennifer Lee Georgia’s HOPE and Pre-K programs stood to gain as much as $127 million if state lawmakers successfully nudged a lottery bill through the legislative process last month. In the end, lawmakers left that proposal and one with a similar aim behind when the 2017 Georgia General Assembly adjourned. Both House and Senate members proposed to […] Read more » Higher Education HOPE
Melissa Johnson Reports Worker Justice Underfunded English Training Limits Contribution from Georgia’s College-Educated Immigrants April 21, 2017 / January 15, 2020 by Melissa Johnson The strength of Georgia’s workforce is undermined by a lack of funding for English language programs. About 55,000 immigrants in Georgia hold a bachelor’s degree or higher and also struggle to speak English, an impediment that prevents many from fully putting their expertise to work here.[1] Georgia’s English language programs enrolled only about 12,000 adults […] Read more » immigration
