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University of Wisconsin–Madison
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty

Tag: Pennsylvania

Poverty in Philadelphia, PA

Philadelphians feel squeezed as U.S. economy seems to hum. That’s a poverty problem, By Alfred Lubrano, July 9, 2018, Philadelphia Inquirer: “You’ve got your wallet on your mind, and your mind on your wallet. At least, that’s what you told us when you voted on which story idea should launch Curious Philly, our new question-and-response forum that allows you to submit questions about your community and have our journalists seek the answers. This is what you asked us to look into first: ‘Despite seeing improvement in the national economy, what we hear about the average income for Philadelphians is that it’s still down. Why is that..?'”

Housing Choice Voucher Program – Pittsburgh, PA

  • New system aims to give Section 8 voucher holders access to more neighborhoods, By Kate Giammarise, March 12, 2018, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “A new payment system, set to start April 1, could allow Section 8 voucher holders to live in more parts of Pittsburgh — neighborhoods they might currently find themselves priced out of, ones with access to good schools, transportation and jobs…”
  • Pittsburgh Housing Authority will ask HUD to delay Section 8 changes, By Kate Giammarise, March 14, 2018, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “Housing officials in Pittsburgh will ask the federal government to allow them to not implement a new payment system — that had been set to take effect April 1 — that aims to give greater neighborhood choice to Section 8 voucher holders. Following pushback at two public hearings Tuesday, the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh will request a waiver from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to give officials more time to develop a methodology to give voucher holders more choices about where to live…”

SNAP Application Process -Pennsylvania

More than 350,000 Pa. seniors take advantage of streamlined food-stamp application, By Kate Giammarise, November 13, 2017, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: “More than a year after the state rolled out a vastly simplified application process for some senior citizens applying for food assistance, more than 350,000 older Pennsylvanians have used the streamlined tool. Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services introduced the easier application in June of last year, changing the form from a 24-page document that covered multiple assistance programs to a more manageable two-page application…”