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News Releases
Public transit, healthy food access among key pathways to increase economic opportunity in Birmingham area, new report finds
Greater Birmingham has experienced a resurgence in economic growth and civic engagement in recent years. But the benefits of this prosperity are not widely shared among everyone living in the region – and a new comprehensive report that Alabama Arise and the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) released Thursday shows that people across Jefferson County [...]
News Releases
52 Alabama groups urge Shelby, Tuberville to support Child Tax Credit, EITC improvements this year
U.S. Sens. Richard Shelby and Tommy Tuberville should support expanding the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in year-end budget legislation, 52 organizations across Alabama wrote in a letter sent to the senators Tuesday. Alabama Arise is among the groups that signed the letter. The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) temporarily [...]
Letters & Testimony
Alabama Arise, 51 partner groups urge U.S. senators to support Child Tax Credit, EITC improvements
The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) temporarily expanded the Child Tax Credit (CTC) for hundreds of thousands of Alabama children last year. The law also temporarily increased the maximum Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) for workers without children and broadened the age range for EITC eligibility. Alabama Arise joined 51 partner organizations Tuesday in a [...]
Blog
Learn about Hunger Free Alabama
Alabama Arise is proud to have joined with groups across the state as partners in the Hunger Free Alabama coalition. Our goal is bold and essential: to prevent and eliminate hunger and malnutrition in Alabama through advocacy for better public policies. In our new video, coalition members Drew Glover and Celsa Allende Stallworth discuss Hunger [...]
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Congress should make the Child Tax Credit expansion permanent
Good public policy is vital in the fight against poverty, and U.S. Census data released last month demonstrates its importance. The 2021 Child Tax Credit (CTC) expansion is uplifting proof of how better policies can reduce poverty and ease suffering. And Congress needs to renew this expansion when it returns to Washington, D.C., after the [...]
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Here’s what Alabama Arise heard from you in summer 2022!
We deeply value the input we get from Alabama Arise members, our allies and most importantly, those directly affected by the work we do together. We depend on what we hear to help guide our issue work and our strategies. Despite the ongoing challenges of connecting in person, we kept working at finding ways to [...]
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ARPA 101: How the American Rescue Plan Act can build a more equitable Alabama
The COVID-19 pandemic has stretched families, hospitals, schools, businesses and food banks across Alabama to their limits. Like tens of millions of other Americans, local and state officials have had to adapt to new challenges and respond to existing health and economic challenges exacerbated by the pandemic over the last two years. Congress reacted to [...]
Blog
Summer food service programs need to be preserved
The COVID-19 pandemic added to the hunger challenges already facing many Alabamians. In response came a wave of federal flexibilities and waivers for the nation’s programs that feed children. As a result, many Alabama students have received nutritious, often free meals with fewer administrative barriers. However, many of these child nutrition waivers could be coming [...]
Letters & Testimony
Alabama Arise, partners urge no disruption to summer food program in Alabama
The Summer Food Service Program has been a critical tool to fight child hunger during the COVID-19 pandemic. But many key program flexibilities will expire June 30 unless Alabama applies for a waiver. Alabama Arise and our partners in the Hunger-Free Alabama coalition wrote a letter Thursday to state school Superintendent Eric Mackey to urge [...]
Blog
Community eligibility helps keep children fed in Alabama
Arise's Celida Soto Garcia explains how the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) helps more than 450 high-poverty schools across Alabama offer breakfast and lunch to students at no charge. Now is the time to contact school superintendents and urge them to opt into CEP if their districts are eligible to participate. A full transcript can be [...]
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Join us for Town Hall Tuesdays!
Listening is key to shaping and advancing public policies that matter most to those marginalized by bad policies. Alabama Arise depends on what we hear to help guide our work toward our vision of a better Alabama for all. Our online Town Hall Tuesdays will return once again this year. These events are a chance [...]
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Highs and lows: Alabama Arise’s look back at the 2022 regular session
The Alabama Legislature’s 2022 regular session adjourned sine die late on Thursday, April 7. Lawmakers capped off the session’s last week with intense debates and late nights, with the final gavel dropping just before midnight. Alabama Arise is grateful for the many positive outcomes that came out of the State House this year. We also [...]
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Arise legislative update: April 12, 2022
Arise's Robyn Hyden breaks down successes and missed opportunities from the Alabama Legislature's 2022 regular session, which ended Thursday night. She highlights breakthroughs on federal ARPA funds, postpartum Medicaid extension and criminal justice reform, among other issues.
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Arise legislative recap: March 7, 2022
Arise's Celida Soto Garcia discusses the problems with SB 156, a bill that would deny SNAP food assistance to Alabamians who fail to “cooperate” or “comply” with child support orders or collection services. The bill could come up for a Senate vote this week. Celida also discusses Arise's upcoming Untax Groceries Rally, scheduled for March [...]
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Six ways Alabama should use ARPA funds to build a better, more inclusive future
The Alabama Legislature’s 2022 regular session, which began Tuesday, will be unusual in one important way. For the first time in many years, Alabama has more than enough revenue to maintain its bare-bones public services. That means instead of scrambling to avoid cuts, the legislative focus can be on strengthening investments in our state’s future. [...]
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Alabama Arise’s administrative advocacy: Big wins in the policy margins
Unlike legislative advocacy, administrative advocacy is an aspect of Alabama Arise’s work we don’t talk about often. Yet that’s where some of our biggest policy wins happen. State agencies and leaders can accomplish some important policy changes via rule changes. Sometimes legislators pass policies with good intentions, but administrative barriers and red tape stop them [...]
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The State of Working Alabama 2021: What policy barriers should Alabama remove on this Labor Day?
It’s Labor Day weekend. The days are ever so slightly cooler. Football season has started. And Alabama’s economy is officially “open for business.” So why are so many jobs still going unfilled in our state? Why are employers looking for workers and not finding them? A look at some very interesting data can provide a [...]
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Special session(s) ahead in Alabama? How Arise is preparing
Alabama Arise’s work for equity, justice and opportunity persisted after the Legislature’s regular session ended. We’ll renew our commitment to those principles when Arise members choose 2022 issue priorities after the Sept. 25 annual meeting. And we’ll keep up the drumbeat when lawmakers return later this year for one or more expected special sessions. Alabama’s [...]
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Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) in Alabama: What you need to know
The COVID-19 pandemic, its recession and increased food costs have created a second, quieter epidemic: hunger. This hunger epidemic has hit schoolchildren the hardest as school closures cost them not only classroom time, but also the school breakfasts and lunches upon which they relied. During the pandemic’s early stage, 13% of Alabama families with children [...]
Blog
Community eligibility offers an enduring path to food security for Alabama schoolchildren
At least one in four children experience hunger in Alabama ‒ a terrible reality even before the onslaught of COVID-19. Many gaps already existed in policies surrounding fair access to food and nutrition in our state. And the pandemic abruptly reminded policymakers of the importance of maintaining fortified safety net systems. State agencies swiftly stepped [...]
Blog
Good news for Alabama families: The expanded Child Tax Credit is here!
Monthly payments from the newly enhanced federal Child Tax Credit begin today, marking a historic breakthrough in fighting child poverty. The payments are part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which will help reduce child poverty in the United States by more than 40%. How does the expanded credit work? ARPA boosted the maximum [...]
News Releases
42 Alabama groups urge Ivey to drive transformative change with federal COVID-19 relief funds
Alabama should build a more equitable and inclusive future by using federal COVID-19 relief money for transformational investments in public health and economic opportunity, according to a letter that 42 churches and organizations across the state sent to Gov. Kay Ivey this week. Alabama Arise is among the groups that co-signed the letter. The American [...]
Letters & Testimony
To strengthen the common good: Six principles for allocating Alabama’s ARPA funding
Introduction Dear Governor Ivey, One of the darkest years in recent memory has put Alabama’s families, communities, health system, businesses – and our leaders at all levels – to the test. Thank you for all your efforts to keep Alabamians safe and secure during this unprecedented emergency. Now that a post-COVID world is dawning, the [...]
Blog
Federal relief funds could transform Alabama’s future
How often have we gotten to say that it’s raining money in Alabama? That’s the image that comes to mind as the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), passed in March, begins to direct more than $4 billion in new federal funds into the state over the next three years. The funding could help Alabama make [...]
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Arise advances justice in a pandemic session
Advocacy barriers for Alabama Arise members were extraordinarily high during the Legislature’s 2021 regular session. The COVID-19 pandemic limited physical access to the State House and made a difficult policy landscape even rockier. But Arise members were undeterred. They spoke out forcefully and repeatedly for justice and opportunity. And the result was real, meaningful progress [...]
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American Rescue Plan Act offers path to recovery
As vaccinations continue across Alabama, COVID-19’s viselike grip on our lives is loosening. The pandemic has caused immense physical, emotional and economic suffering, and those aftereffects will not fade quickly. But the American Rescue Plan Act – the federal relief package that President Joe Biden signed March 11 – includes many important policies to begin [...]
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Arise legislative recap: March 12, 2021
Arise's Carol Gundlach breaks down the American Rescue Plan and what it means for Alabama families including expansions to the Child Tax Credit and EITC helping to reduce poverty across Alabama.
News Releases
Federal relief package will reduce Alabamians’ unmet health needs, hunger, housing instability and other hardships
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 will reduce poverty while expanding health care, housing and nutrition protections across Alabama, according to analyses by Alabama Arise and other research organizations. President Joe Biden signed the new federal COVID-19 relief package into law Thursday. The law will slash poverty by expanding tax credits to struggling households [...]
News Releases
Policies to advance racial, gender equity key to Alabama workforce’s COVID-19 recovery, new Alabama Arise report shows
Alabama should rebuild from the COVID-19 recession by lifting policy barriers to economic opportunity and charting a path toward a more equitable and inclusive future, according to The State of Working Alabama 2021, a new report that Alabama Arise released Monday. Medicaid expansion and a state law guaranteeing paid sick leave both would help strengthen [...]
Report
The State of Working Alabama 2021
Introduction When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Alabama in March 2020, it didn’t just cause massive human suffering and economic disruption. It also revealed suffering and disruption that have long existed and that policymakers have long neglected – or even perpetuated. COVID-19 has laid bare deep racial inequities in Alabama’s economy and social system that have [...]
Report
The State of Working Alabama 2021, Section 1 – Introduction: The high cost of failing to protect the common good
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Alabama in March 2020, it didn’t just cause massive human suffering and economic disruption. It also revealed suffering and disruption that have long existed and that policymakers have long neglected – or even perpetuated. COVID-19 has laid bare deep racial and gender inequities in Alabama’s economy and social system that [...]
Report
The State of Working Alabama 2021, Section 3 – Assessing the damage: COVID-19 and Alabama’s labor market
Where are we now? The COVID-19 recession hit vulnerable Alabama workers hard and fast. Alabamians working in low-paying industries suffered immediate and severe job losses, which fell hardest on women and people of color. Unemployment insurance (UI), designed for just such a moment, was inadequate and insufficient to the needs of these workers because of [...]
Report
The State of Working Alabama 2021, Section 4 – Praised but underprotected: Front-line workers in the pandemic
Where are we now? Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we’ve grown used to seeing, and applauding, signs in front of hospitals, fire departments, police stations and other emergency service providers saying “Heroes work here.” And we’ve learned to say “thank you” to people serving their communities’ needs at grocery, drug and convenience stores. We’ve learned [...]
Report
The State of Working Alabama 2021, Section 6 – The ugly reality: Alabama’s hunger problem during the pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to widespread hunger in Alabama. We all have seen the pictures – lines of cars stretching for blocks waiting to receive an emergency food box, desperate appeals from food banks that distributed as much food in the first six months of the pandemic as they did in the prior year, [...]
Blog
Arise legislative recap: Feb. 16, 2021
Arise executive director Robyn Hyden breaks down the first two weeks in the Alabama Legislature's 2021 regular session and outlines Arise's goals for this session. Legislators have prioritized protecting corporations over workers so far this month, even as hundreds of thousands of Alabamians continue to struggle with hunger and hardship during the COVID-19 recession.
Blog
Beyond hunger and poverty: An introduction to the Emerson Fellows at Alabama Arise
[caption id="attachment_4780" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Kate Blankinship and Curtis Hills pause for a photo after completing a mile run.[/caption] This is a post by Kate Blankinship and Curtis Hills. Kate and Curtis are Emerson National Hunger Fellows from the Congressional Hunger Center. They have joined Alabama Arise to assist our work on policies to reduce hunger [...]
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How Alabama Arise is working to build a brighter future after the pandemic
After a year of darkness, the light at the end of the tunnel is finally in sight. Promising vaccine news offers hope that public health officials can rein in COVID-19 in the coming months. And as our state and nation seek policy solutions to rebuild from the pandemic’s health and economic devastation, Alabama Arise will [...]
News Releases
Pandemic EBT renewal a good first step, but families still need comprehensive COVID-19 relief
The U.S. Senate this week approved a continuing resolution that extended Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits through September 2021. The resolution was enacted Thursday. Alabama Arise policy analyst Carol Gundlach issued the following statement Friday in response: “The extension of Pandemic EBT through September 2021 is welcome news for families struggling to make ends meet. P-EBT [...]
Blog
Town Hall Tuesdays 2020: What we heard from Arise supporters
Listening is often an underdeveloped skill, yet it is critical for mutual understanding and working together for meaningful change. That’s why Arise is committed to listening to our members, to our allies and most importantly, to those directly affected by the work we do together. We depend on what we hear from you to guide [...]
Blog
P-EBT, rapid school actions keep Alabama children fed
Six months ago, COVID-19 forced school officials to reinvent public education on the fly. For more than 400,000 Alabama students, the stakes were more than academic. School closures also threatened their daily nutrition. Schools’ responses were encouraging and fast. Last spring, Alabama quickly adopted federal options to serve multiple meals at once and offer them [...]
News Releases
U.S. Senate still needs to do its job and pass meaningful COVID-19 relief
The U.S. Senate on Thursday failed to advance an inadequate COVID-19 relief plan. Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden issued the following statement Thursday in response: “The bill that failed in the Senate this week was wholly inadequate to meet the size and scope of suffering that the COVID-19 pandemic has inflicted across Alabama and [...]
News Releases
COVID-19 executive actions ‘a Band-Aid over a gaping economic wound’
The White House on Saturday unveiled executive actions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Alabama Arise communications director Chris Sanders issued the following statement Tuesday in response: “These executive actions put a Band-Aid over a gaping economic wound. They don’t stem the tide of evictions or extend rental or mortgage assistance to help people stay in [...]
Blog
Alabama should ensure all eligible residents receive federal stimulus payments
Alabama and the nation are facing an economic crisis like nothing we’ve ever seen. More than 13% of Alabama households don’t have enough money to feed their families, the Census Bureau reports. Nearly half of Alabama’s renters may face eviction in the near future. Meanwhile, an estimated 267,000 eligible Alabamians have not received their federal [...]
News Releases
New Senate COVID-19 relief plan falls short of meeting Alabamians’ needs
U.S. Senate Republicans on Monday unveiled a new proposed COVID-19 relief plan. Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden issued the following statement Tuesday in response: “Millions of Alabamians are being pushed to the brink during the COVID-19 crisis. They’re struggling with difficult tradeoffs between protecting their own health, paying for basic necessities and caring for [...]
Blog
Working in Alabama during the COVID-19 pandemic: Who faces the danger?
Many Alabamians have modified their work circumstances in recent months to reduce the risk of contracting COVID-19. But tens of thousands of people still must work in public-facing jobs that put them at increased risk of illness. Front-line workers in grocery stores, hospitals and pharmacies perform necessary tasks to keep our communities functioning during the [...]
Blog
You’re invited to Arise’s Town Hall Tuesdays!
Arise’s statewide online summer listening sessions are a chance to hear what’s happening on key state policy issues and share your vision for our 2021 policy agenda. Register now to help identify emerging issues and inform our work to build a better Alabama. We'd love to see you at any or all of these sessions! [...]
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Arise legislative update: May 21, 2020
Alabama legislators ended the regular session this week by enacting education and General Fund budgets for 2021. But as the COVID-19 downturn hammers state tax revenues, we fear lawmakers' optimism surrounding these budgets could be misplaced. Arise's Carol Gundlach explains why the Legislature likely will return for one or more special sessions later this year [...]
Blog
Community eligibility ensures future success of Alabama’s child nutrition programs
Even during “normal” times, one in four Alabama children goes to bed each night uncertain where they’ll get their next meal. Sadly, the COVID-19 economic downturn has likely pushed that number higher. Most days, hungry children can look forward to school meals to help keep them fed. But school closures amid the pandemic have disrupted [...]
Blog
Pandemic EBT keeps Alabama children fed when school meals aren’t an option
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the lives of nearly every Alabama family, including families with school-aged children. All of a sudden, parents have to double as teachers, coaches and lunchroom cooks and servers. Parents with low incomes are also stretching limited grocery dollars to replace meals that their children normally got at school – often [...]
News Releases
Alabama Arise urges new federal guidance on return to unsafe working conditions
Workers shouldn't have to choose between their lives and their livelihoods. That's why Alabama Arise joined more than 220 organizations across the country Tuesday in a letter urging the U.S. Department of Labor to act aggressively to protect workers who are at higher risk from COVID-19. Existing federal laws protect workers from losing eligibility for [...]
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Arise update: May 1, 2020
As job losses and business closures mount, state revenues for education, health care and other public services are likely to plummet. Arise's Carol Gundlach discusses how progressive tax changes would help prevent cuts to these services and help Alabama rebuild its economy after the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more about our proposals here.
Handbook
How to get help in Alabama during the COVID-19 crisis
Last updated Sept. 17, 2021. Life is changing quickly for everyone during the coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency. Protecting yourself and your family from the virus is the first of many concerns. The pandemic also has left many Alabamians worried about food, health care, housing, job security and other basic needs. Alabama has a safety [...]
Blog
Arise update: April 16, 2020
State and federal leaders have taken action to help struggling Alabamians stay healthy and make ends meet amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but they must do more. Arise's Robyn Hyden gives a video update on the coronavirus' implications for Medicaid expansion, public health funding, food assistance, unemployment insurance, paid family and medical leave, prisons and jails, [...]
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Arise update: April 4, 2020
Like all of you, we're doing what we can to weather this crisis, and we have many concerns about the health and well-being of our families and communities. Arise executive director Robyn Hyden highlights some resources on our website that can help you navigate new SNAP and unemployment insurance benefits available for people who need [...]
Fact Sheet
Federal law strengthened SNAP amid COVID-19 pandemic, but benefit increase still needed
The economic meltdown resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has created an extraordinary demand for food assistance. State agencies are working overtime to figure out how to get food to hungry Alabamians while schools are closed, people are sheltering in place and the risk of infection is high. Applications for food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition [...]
Fact Sheet
Unemployment insurance improvements, recovery rebates will help Alabamians hurt by COVID-19 pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has caused an unprecedented increase in unemployment insurance claims nationally. And the story is the same in Alabama, where 74,056 UI claims were filed in the week ending Saturday, March 28. That’s easily a record high since 1987, the earliest year for which weekly data is available for Alabama. The number of [...]
Blog
COVID-19: 7 policy changes that would help protect Alabamians
The World Health Organization has labeled COVID-19 a global pandemic. And state officials announced the first confirmed case of the disease in Alabama on Friday. As the virus strains our health systems, schools and economy, we must ensure the most vulnerable Alabamians have the medical care, social supports and other protections they need to weather [...]
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Education, health care, nutrition and more: Why the Census matters to Alabama
The 2020 Census is nearly here. In mid-March, the Census Bureau will begin mailing out informational postcards to all U.S. residents. The postcards will provide instructions on how to complete the Census for your household. Filling out the Census is important for a number of reasons. Alabama’s count impacts our state legislative districts and our [...]
Blog
Why we’re spreading the word about the Census across Alabama
Filling out your Census form is quick and easy. It only takes about 10 minutes to answer 10 questions. You won’t have to do it again for 10 years. And your answers are completely confidential. It may not seem like much, but the stakes are high. The accuracy of Alabama’s 2020 Census count will shape [...]
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Arise 2020: Our vision for a better Alabama
Alabama Arise members have worked for more than three decades to build a brighter, more inclusive future for our state. And as the Legislature’s 2020 regular session starts Tuesday, we’re proud to renew that commitment. Below, Arise executive director Robyn Hyden highlights some key goals for the session, including Medicaid expansion and untaxing groceries. How [...]
Blog
Arise 2020: Fight harmful proposals to cut Medicaid, SNAP and TANF
Safety net programs are designed to protect us when times get tough. But a recent wave of legislative and administrative attacks to those programs has threatened vital food and health assistance for millions of families across Alabama and the nation. The stakes are high for people who struggle to make ends meet. Medicaid is a [...]
Fact Sheet
A strong safety net means a stronger Alabama for all
We all know that people get down on their luck sometimes. They lose a job, have a sick child or need time to recover from an injury. And most Alabamians – understanding that “there, but for the grace of God, go I” – want to do what they can to help people going through a [...]
Blog
How Alabama Arise is lifting up community voices in Alabama Medicaid
Alabama Medicaid is at a moment of transformation, opening up opportunities for a new focus on improving health outcomes. And Alabama Arise is working hard to ensure community needs and voices stay at the forefront. Medicaid primary care is moving from a statewide fee-for-service model to a system of seven Alabama Coordinated Health Networks (ACHNs). [...]
Letters & Testimony
Alabama Arise comments on how proposed SNAP changes would reduce school meal access
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing a rule that would require some states to reduce gross income limits for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applicants. It also would force 42 states, including Alabama, to impose resource limits on applicants. More than 3 million people would become ineligible for food assistance under the rule, [...]
Blog
You can help protect school meals for thousands of Alabama children
We alerted you this summer to a proposed rule that could deny 36,000 Alabamians access to food assistance under the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP). By changing SNAP’s categorical eligibility requirements, this proposal would deny or reduce nutrition assistance to almost 3 million struggling Americans. But it turns out it’s even worse for children than [...]
Blog
Affordable child care is an investment in Alabama’s future
“Anybody who’s ever paid for child care knows it’s cheaper to pay for college sometimes.” That’s what I told AL.com’s Anna Claire Vollers about Alabama’s shortage of affordable child care. Her new article this week examines how expensive child care limits economic opportunity for struggling parents across our state. Quality, affordable child care is essential [...]
Letters & Testimony
Alabama Arise comments in opposition to proposed SNAP categorical eligibility changes
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing a rule that would require some states to reduce gross income limits for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applicants. It also would force 42 states, including Alabama, to impose resource limits on applicants. More than 3 million people would become ineligible for food assistance under the rule, [...]
Blog
Learn more about Arise’s 2020 issue proposals
Grassroots democracy will be on display when Alabama Arise members choose our 2020 issue priorities at our annual meeting Sept. 7 in Montgomery. The following proposals will be up for a vote for our 2020 legislative agenda. Housing Trust Fund revenue Voting rights Criminal justice debt reform Death penalty reform Payday and title lending reform [...]
News Releases
New federal public charge rule will hurt families and children across Alabama
A new Department of Homeland Security regulation published Monday will harm the health and well-being of thousands of Alabama families. The so-called public charge rule also will threaten access to health and human services programs for U.S.-born citizen children. When proposed last fall, the regulation drew more than 266,000 public comments, overwhelmingly in opposition. The feedback [...]
Blog
How a proposed new SNAP rule would increase hunger for millions of Americans
The White House has proposed a new rule that would increase hunger for millions of Americans. The plan would require some states to reduce gross income limits for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applicants. It also would force 42 states, including Alabama, to impose resource limits on applicants. More than 3 million people would become [...]
Report
Enhanced child care funding makes life better for Alabama’s children and families
Quality, affordable child care is essential for families seeking to escape poverty and participate in employment, education and training activities. The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), a federally funded program that subsidizes care for low and moderate-income parents of young children, provides critical funding for affordable child care. In Alabama, CCDBG funds are [...]
Letters & Testimony
Alabama Arise comments in opposition to federal plan to redefine poverty line
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is proposing to reduce annual cost-of-living adjustments to the federal poverty line. Over time, this plan would reduce or end Medicaid, SNAP food assistance and other work supports for millions of Americans. Here is the full text of the comments Alabama Arise submitted in opposition to this proposal: [...]
Blog
Harmful plan to redefine poverty would cut eligibility for Medicaid, SNAP
Pretending poverty doesn’t exist won’t reduce poverty. But a new federal plan seeks to shrink the federal poverty line, making it a less accurate measure of need. The Office of Management and Budget’s proposal would reduce annual cost-of-living adjustments to the poverty line. And that would have disastrous consequences for millions of struggling Americans. It’s [...]
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Arise legislative recap: June 7, 2019
Arise's Robyn Hyden looks back at some important policy wins -- and previews what's still to come -- following the conclusion of the Alabama Legislature's 2019 regular session.
Blog
The 2019 session that was, and the one yet to come
Alabama legislators ended their 2019 regular session last week. But they’re not done yet. Amid the threat of federal intervention, the Legislature likely will hold a special session this fall to address horrendous conditions in our state’s overcrowded prisons. This summer, Arise will continue making the case that meaningful prison reform must include Medicaid expansion. [...]
Blog
Arise legislative recap: April 26, 2019
A state Senate committee approved a bill Wednesday to cut new holes in Alabama’s safety net. Arise's Carol Gundlach explains how these new limits on Medicaid, SNAP and TANF would increase hunger and hardship for tens of thousands of struggling Alabamians.
Blog
Senate panel OKs costly new SNAP, Medicaid limits that would punish struggling Alabamians
There’s an old saying: If you like laws or sausage, you should never watch either one being made. Wednesday afternoon was a perfect example of how stomach-turning it can be to see how laws are often made in Alabama. The Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee approved a bill Wednesday to cut new holes [...]
Blog
Arise legislative recap: April 19, 2019
"The grocery tax is a tax on a basic necessity of life. It's a tax on survival. And it's time for Alabama to bring this tax to an end." Arise communications director Chris Sanders discusses a recent bill by Rep. Chris England that would be a major step forward on untaxing groceries. The video also [...]
Blog
Budget hearings show need for Alabama to expand Medicaid, boost public investments
Alabama needs to expand Medicaid and invest more in education and other human services. Those were key takeaways from this week’s state budget hearings in Montgomery. The hearings highlighted a range of policy challenges and illustrated the connections between many of them. We heard a lot of talk this week about the need to strengthen [...]
News Releases
Shutdown deal brings sigh of relief for struggling Alabamians
The White House on Friday announced a short-term agreement to end the 35-day partial shutdown of the federal government. Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden issued the following statement in response: “The pain from this unnecessary shutdown has grown by the day. Fortunately, this deal will reopen the federal government without causing further damage to [...]
Blog
How will the government shutdown affect SNAP food assistance in Alabama?
The partial federal government shutdown will enter its second month next week, and the stakes are high for Alabama families. Here are five things you need to know about how the shutdown will affect food assistance in Alabama: Most Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants will see their February 2019 benefits issued around Sunday, Jan. [...]
News Releases
Bipartisan Farm Bill brings good news for struggling Alabamians
The U.S. House on Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018, passed a compromise Farm Bill that avoided threatened cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). All members of Alabama’s House delegation joined Alabama’s two U.S. senators in voting for the bill. Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden issued the following statement in response: “The Farm Bill [...]
News Releases
U.S. Senate vote to protect SNAP is great news for Alabama
Arise Citizens’ Policy Project executive director Kimble Forrister issued the following statement Thursday, June 28, 2018, in response to the U.S. Senate’s 86-11 vote for a Farm Bill that protects and strengthens the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): “SNAP helps nearly 900,000 Alabamians make ends meet, and we’re pleased that the Senate voted overwhelmingly today for [...]
News Releases
House Farm Bill would take food assistance from thousands of Alabamians, hurt rural communities
Arise Citizens’ Policy Project executive director Kimble Forrister issued the following statement Thursday, June 21, 2018, in response to the U.S. House’s passage of a Farm Bill that would cut food assistance for millions of Americans: “The U.S. House just voted to make life harder for tens of thousands of Alabamians. The House Farm Bill [...]
Letters & Testimony
Arise and partner groups urge Jones, Shelby to support Senate Farm Bill without harmful changes
Nearly 1 in 8 Americans, including nearly 900,000 Alabamians, depend on SNAP to help them keep food on the table. And each year, SNAP contributes $1.3 billion to Alabama’s economy, spent in more than 5,000 Alabama stores. Standing in stark contrast to the House Farm Bill, which could terminate or reduce benefits for more than 2 [...]
News Releases
Congress should embrace Farm Bill without SNAP cuts, following lead of U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee vote
Arise Citizens’ Policy Project executive director Kimble Forrister issued the following statement Wednesday, June 13, 2018, in response to the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee’s vote to approve a Farm Bill that protects and strengthens the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): “SNAP plays a vital role in feeding tens of millions of children, parents, seniors, people with [...]
News Releases
U.S. House vote against Farm Bill shows need to reject SNAP cuts, take bipartisan approach to fighting hunger
Arise Citizens’ Policy Project policy analyst Carol Gundlach issued the following statement Friday, May 18, 2018, in response to the U.S. House vote against a Farm Bill that would have cut food assistance for millions of struggling Americans: “The U.S. House was right to reject a harmful Farm Bill that would have left millions of [...]
Fact Sheet
Proposed new SNAP work requirements would harm struggling families across Alabama
Congress is considering legislation that would impose harsh work requirements on participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). SNAP, also known as food stamps, is part of the U.S. Farm Bill that must be reauthorized by Sept. 30, 2018. The version of the Farm Bill that has passed the House Agriculture Committee contains harmful and [...]
Fact Sheet
Why SNAP and the Farm Bill matter to Alabama
The Farm Bill is a federal law that funds and governs many food and agricultural programs. It must be renewed about every five years and is up for reauthorization now. The largest program in it is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). SNAP provides vital food assistance to people with very low incomes. It also plays [...]
News Releases
Farm Bill proposal would take food from thousands of Alabamians, jeopardize rural communities
Arise Citizens’ Policy Project policy analyst Carol Gundlach issued the following statement Friday, April 13, 2018, in response to the release of the draft 2018 Farm Bill by Republicans on the U.S. House Agriculture Committee: “The proposed Farm Bill would increase hunger and hardship across Alabama by undercutting the best anti-poverty program we have: the [...]
News Releases
White House’s proposed cuts to nutrition, health care and housing would hurt struggling Alabamians
Arise Citizens’ Policy Project executive director Kimble Forrister issued the following statement Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018, in response to the release of the White House’s proposed 2019 federal budget: “The White House’s budget proposal lays out a vision of a dark and troubling future for struggling families across Alabama. This plan would slash services like [...]
Fact Sheet
A big win for second chances: Alabama’s lifetime SNAP and TANF bans end
It’s a quiet win for thousands of Alabamians seeking to rebuild their lives and provide for their families: Alabama is joining the majority of U.S. states by allowing people with a past felony drug conviction to receive SNAP food assistance and TANF financial assistance, as long as they are otherwise eligible. The effective starting date for [...]
Fact Sheet
SNAP time limits: What you need to know
Many unemployed Alabama adults once again face strict time limits for assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps. These “able-bodied adults without dependents” – folks who do not live in a SNAP household with children – will be allowed to receive SNAP benefits for only three months during a three-year [...]
Blog
A budget at last: What got cut, what didn’t, and what’s next for Alabama
Three times proved to be the charm Wednesday night as the Alabama Legislature finally passed a General Fund (GF) budget and accompanying revenue bills. Gov. Robert Bentley signed the budget Thursday morning, a mere two weeks before the start of the 2016 budget year. Tax bills: What passed and what didn’t Alabama faced a GF [...]
Blog
What went well in 2015 — and the challenges that remain for Alabama
It’s over! But it’s not over yet. After approving a wholly inadequate General Fund budget that would jeopardize our state’s future, the Alabama Legislature ended the 2015 regular session Thursday. But Gov. Robert Bentley vetoed that budget, and he will call lawmakers back for a special session on the budget later this summer. Arise members celebrated some [...]
Blog
A quiet win: SNAP, TANF eligibility bans end under new Alabama prison reform law
Tucked away in the new prison reform law that Gov. Robert Bentley signed Thursday is a big win for second chances in Alabama: an end to the state’s lifetime eligibility bans for SNAP and TANF assistance for people with a past felony drug conviction. It’s a win on an issue that has been an Arise priority since [...]
Blog
Prison reform bill would end Alabama’s food assistance ban for former drug offenders
The sweeping prison reform bill that the Alabama Senate passed Thursday was amended to include one of Arise’s legislative priorities: ending the state’s SNAP and TANF eligibility bans for people with a past felony drug conviction. Senators voted 31-2 for SB 67, sponsored by Sen. Cam Ward, R-Alabaster. The measure now goes to the House, [...]
Fact Sheet
The basics: WIC saves lives, prevents malnutrition
Congress established WIC in the 1970s to try to reduce disturbingly high infant death rates, and the program has been a success story ever since. Infant mortality rates in Alabama and nationwide have fallen by nearly two-thirds since the creation of the program officially known as the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. [...]
Fact Sheet
The basics: Alabama’s meager but vital TANF program
The cost of living has increased in the last two decades, but federal money for temporary cash aid for very low-income families has not kept up. The federal government in 1997 froze its allocations for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, informally known as welfare. Since then, the number of families receiving benefits has [...]
Fact Sheet
The basics: Child nutrition programs in Alabama
Many hungry children miss out on far more than regular meals. Hunger can do serious, long-term harm to a child's health and ability to learn, and childhood hunger is a bigger challenge in Alabama than in most other states. More than one in four of the state's children live in families with incomes below the poverty [...]
Blog
Alabama Legislature OKs new requirements for TANF recipients, doesn’t end lifetime SNAP, TANF bans for people with felony drug conviction
People convicted of a drug-related felony will remain ineligible for food assistance or cash welfare benefits in Alabama after the state House adjourned Thursday night without passing a bill to end the state’s lifetime eligibility bans for them. Lawmakers approved several other bills related to public benefits this week, including a requirement for some applicants [...]
Blog
Alabama Legislature passes ETF budget, goes home without approving bills on payday lending, execution drug secrecy
Alabama lawmakers passed a $5.9 billion Education Trust Fund (ETF) budget without a pay raise for K-12 teachers just before the 2014 regular session ended Thursday night. The House voted 54-45 to agree to the compromise budget that the Senate approved Tuesday. That leaves Gov. Robert Bentley, who urged the Legislature to approve a 2 percent [...]
Blog
Bill to end lifetime SNAP, TANF bans still alive but loses procedural vote in Alabama House
A bill to allow people convicted of a drug-related felony to regain eligibility for food assistance or cash welfare benefits in Alabama suffered a setback Wednesday when it failed to clear a procedural hurdle in the state House. The House voted 55-43 Wednesday to consider SB 303, sponsored by Sen. Linda Coleman, D-Birmingham. That majority [...]
Blog
Alabama House could vote next week on bill to end lifetime SNAP, TANF bans for people with felony drug conviction
The Alabama House could vote as soon as Tuesday on a bill that would allow people convicted of a drug-related felony to regain eligibility for food assistance or cash welfare benefits. A House committee Wednesday approved the bill, which the Senate passed last month. SB 303, sponsored by Sen. Linda Coleman, D-Birmingham, awaits consideration by [...]
Blog
Senate passes bill to end Alabama’s lifetime SNAP, TANF bans for people with felony drug conviction
People convicted of a drug-related felony could regain their eligibility for food assistance or cash welfare benefits in Alabama under a bill that the state Senate passed 18-8 Thursday. SB 303, sponsored by Sen. Linda Coleman, D-Birmingham, moves to the House. SB 303 would allow otherwise eligible people to receive food assistance or cash welfare [...]
Blog
Alabama Senate panel OKs bill to lift lifetime SNAP, TANF bans for people with felony drug conviction
An Alabama Senate committee Wednesday approved a bill that would allow people who were convicted of a drug-related felony to regain eligibility for food assistance or cash welfare benefits. The Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Accountability (FR&A) Committee voted 5-2 to send the bill to the full Senate for consideration. Alabama is one of just 10 [...]
Blog
Alabama Senate panel narrows scope of bill regarding public benefits recipients
A state Senate committee Wednesday drastically reduced the scope of a proposal that would have required most adults who receive a wide range of public benefits in Alabama to perform community service. The committee approved a new version of SB 87, sponsored by Sen. Bryan Taylor, R-Prattville, that simply would forbid the state from continuing to [...]
Blog
Alabama Senate committees OK bills to impose tougher rules on TANF recipients
Alabama Senate committees this week considered legislation that would make getting public assistance far more complicated for low-income Alabamians. The bills, all but one of which won committee approval Wednesday, would impose additional requirements on people who receive benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. Among the legislation are bills that would: [...]