The Social Work Policy Network sends weekly resources regarding national & local legislature, events, as well as media.
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Professional Opportunities
Manager for Foundation and Government Grants - New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (New York, NY)
Youth Wellness Program Coordinator - Nationalities Service Center (Philadelphia, PA)
Public Employment Relations Specialist 3 - Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) (Trenton, NJ)
Director of Positive Youth Development Policy and Advocacy - Advocates for Children of New Jersey (Newark, NJ)
Staten Island Community Organizer - Citizen Action of NY (New York, NY)
DE&I Talent Acquisition Manager - Princeton University (Princeton, NJ)
Program Coordinator - Urban League of Essex County (Newark, NJ)
Policy Analyst - Inclusiv (West New York, NJ)
Upcoming Events
Bernie Sanders Visiting Rutgers for a U.S. Senate HELP Committee Field Hearing
Friday, October 27th, 2023
9:00 a.m.
Nicholas Music Center - Douglas Campus
85 George St, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
Senator Bernie Sanders will be coming to Rutgers University to conduct a field hearing as Chairman of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pension Committee. The purpose of this hearing will be to discuss the issues of national significance being raised by the nurses’ strike at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital including the nurse staffing crisis and how this crisis impacts patient outcomes and workplace safety.
Senator Sanders recently said “I am especially interested in hearing from Mark Manigan, the President of RWJBarnabas Health which owns the Robert Wood Johnson University nonprofit hospital. I look forward to hearing how his health care system could afford to spend over $17 million on CEO compensation in 2021 and how his hospital could afford $87 million on traveling nurses since the strike began, but somehow cannot afford to mandate safe staffing ratios to improve the lives of patients and health care workers.”
Learn more about the event and register to attend.
*seating is first come, first serve
Supporting Families with State Tax Credits: The New England Model
Thursday, November 2nd, 2023
2:00 p.m.
Online (Zoom)
The Niskanen Center invites you to join a timely virtual discussion featuring a panel of New England policymakers who have spearheaded a particularly promising approach to supporting families through state tax credits.
A quiet revolution is taking place in statehouses nationwide as policymakers rethink their approach to supporting families in state tax codes. Once rare, tax credits for children and other dependents are increasingly common across the country. Twenty-one states have introduced or expanded these tax credits over the last five years.
Income eligibility, dependent eligibility, and benefit amount vary widely across the states. An emerging New England model, which focuses on making these credits effectively universal with no phase-in (fully refundable) and high or no phase-out, offers a promising approach. This virtual panel brings together policymakers from Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maine to discuss their respective states’ experience designing family tax credits.
Full panel:
-Josh McCabe, Director of Social Policy, Niskanen Center (moderator)
-Rep. Janet Ancel, Vermont House of Representatives
-Sen. Susan Moran, Massachusetts State Senate
-Rep. Maureen Terry, Maine House of Representatives
Register for the Zoom event.
Election Day is November 7th!
Election Day is right around the corner!
This is the year that every NJ legislative seat is up for re-election!
What's on the Ballot?
Do you know where to vote?
If you are a resident of New Jersey, click the button below to locate your polling place so you know where to go on November 7th!
Find your Polling Place!
National Updates
The Troubled Teen Industry Offers Trauma, Not Therapy - The New York Times (Opinion)
“In 1994, the 15-year-old Liz Ianelli was sent by her parents to the Family Foundation School in Hancock, N.Y., which claimed to treat her disruptive behavior. But she said her “therapy” for most of the next three years consisted of daily emotional attacks by staff and fellow students, forced labor, food deprivation and other assaults…Now Ms. Ianelli is an activist and the author of a new memoir, “I See You, Survivor,” which details her ordeal.”
Recent Trends in Housing Cost Burden Among U.S. Military Veterans - RAND Corporation
“Although U.S. veterans are less likely than nonveterans to live in poverty, past estimates have found that millions of veteran households spend more than half their income on housing costs, suggesting they are at increased risk of experiencing housing instability and, in some cases, might be at risk of becoming homeless.”
The subtle privatization of Medicare - Vox
“Medicare, the paragon of America’s welfare state, is undergoing a subtle but fundamental transformation from government program to public benefit provided by private companies, a shift with major implications for both patients and taxpayers. This alternative version of Medicare, known as Medicare Advantage, now covers more than half of the program’s 60 million enrollees, or about 31 million Americans — nearly double its share 10 years ago.”
US vetoes UN resolution condemning Hamas attacks on Israel, violence against citizens - The Hill
“The United States vetoed a United Nations resolution Wednesday condemning Hamas attacks on Israel and violence against civilians, saying it did not include language about Israel’s right to defend itself. The U.S. was the only member nation in the 15-member Security Council to vote against the resolution, as 12 other countries voted to approve the resolution, according to The Associated Press. Two other countries abstained from the vote.”
Local & Regional Updates
Union, hospital reps meet on Day 77 of RWJ nurses’ strike - NJ Spotlight News
“Union representatives for 1,700 nurses on strike for 77 days at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick met with hospital leaders Thursday to try to address the sticking points of a deal to get the nurses back to work. Those sticking points include penalties the union wants if the hospital doesn’t meet agreed staffing ratios. “If they’re not staffed appropriately, if they don’t meet the staffing guidelines, again the only way the guideline is enforceable is if there’s a penalty,” said Judy Danella, president of United Steelworkers Local 4-200, which represents the nurses.”
New Jersey will spend $25M to expand free, full-day preschool by January - New Jersey Monitor
“Twenty-six school districts in 13 counties in New Jersey will get nearly $25 million to establish or expand all-day preschool programs by this January, state officials announced Wednesday. The funding is the latest investment the Murphy administration has made in its long-term goal of providing free, full-day preschool statewide for 3- and 4-year-olds, said Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, who is acting governor while Gov. Phil Murphy is overseas on a 9-day trade mission in East Asia.”
Trenton, NJ police department faces federal investigation for alleged abuses - Gothamist
“Federal officials say they’ll investigate whether Trenton, New Jersey police are committing “systemic violations of the Constitution and federal law” in an inquiry announced on Tuesday…According to the U.S. attorney’s office, investigators will conduct a comprehensive review of policies, training and supervision of the Trenton Police Department. The probe will also focus on how civilian complaints are received and investigated, and how the department makes disciplinary decisions.”
Another legal challenge to N.J. offshore wind project - NPR
“The federal government is the latest party to be entangled in the maze of litigation surrounding New Jersey’s initial offshore wind farm — the Ocean Wind I project. In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New Jersey, commercial fishing and tourism interests and a conservation group joined Cape May County in accusing federal agencies of ignoring and violating laws designed to protect the environment and marine life.”
Media of the Week: Podcast
A Texas Town Wanted Tougher Border Security. Now It's Having Regrets.
When the governor of Texas announced an extraordinary plan to use local law enforcement to try to deter migrants from crossing from the border with Mexico, few communities were more receptive than the city of Eagle Pass, where residents had become fed up with the federal government’s approach.
Now, two years later, people who once welcomed the plan are turning against it. Edgar Sandoval, who writes about South Texas for The New York Times, and Nina Feldman, a producer on “The Daily,” traveled to Eagle Pass to find out why.
