Last week, Legal Aid filed comments opposing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s proposed rule change that would make it more difficult for the District of Columbia and all states to obtain waivers of onerous work requirements for a population of SNAP beneficiaries known as ABAWDs (Able-Bodied Adults without Dependents). Read more →

The District of Columbia experienced the most intense gentrification—and had the highest percentage of gentrified neighborhoods—of any city in the nation between 2000 and 2013, according to a new study by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC). This study, released last week, helps to highlight the continuing importance of the work that Legal Aid is doing to preserve affordable housing in DC. Read more →

A report released yesterday by the DC Fiscal Policy Institute finds that the burdensome recertification requirements the District imposes on Alliance beneficiaries contribute to worsening health outcomes and higher health care costs.

The DC Health Care Safety Net Alliance program provides health insurance to low-income residents of the District who are not eligible for Medicaid due to strict federal restrictions on immigrant eligibility for federally funded public benefits. Although Alliance provides critical, life-saving services, the DC Department of Health Care Finance (DHCF) adopted a harmful policy in 2011 requiring all beneficiaries to complete an in-person, face-to-face interview every six months in order to keep their coverage. Read more →

Last week, thousands of DC residents with suspended driver’s licenses based on unpaid civil money judgments became eligible to have their licenses reinstated. On March 13 the Driver’s License Revocation Fairness Amendment Act of 2018, passed by the DC Council last December, officially took effect as DC Law 22-0236. According to a report recently released by the DMV, 2,282 DC residents have their licenses suspended as a result of provisions now repealed under the new law. The DMV has announced it will mail notices to all affected persons letting them know they can apply for reinstatement of their licenses. Read more →

Yesterday, Legal Aid and Alston & Bird LLP announced that they filed a complaint in federal court against the D.C. Housing Authority and its Executive Director, Tyrone Garrett, alleging that the agency fails to comply with local and federal laws and regulations protecting the rights of survivors of domestic violence who participate in housing subsidy programs. The plaintiff (to whom we will refer to as Jane Smith, to protect her identity) also filed a motion for a preliminary injunction. Read more →

Tuesday night, Legal Aid convened a group of eight former clients we served across a broad cross section of our practice areas to explore whether they would like to be a part of our organization’s first inaugural Community Advisory Council. We are thrilled and honored to report that by the end of the meeting, we received an enthusiastic “yes!” from each participant. Read more →

Tomorrow, the DC Council will vote for a final time on the Wage Garnishment Fairness Act of 2017, a bill that would reform District law governing garnishment of employees’ wages for collection on civil judgments. Introduced in November of last year, the bill would protect low and moderate-income District residents by placing reasonable limits on this often-debilitating debt collection method. We urge the Council to vote for the bill one final time and resist any efforts by the debt collection industry to weaken the bill via last-minute amendments. Read more →

Today, the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security stating our strong opposition to proposed regulations governing the “public charge determination” for immigrants and their families. The proposed rule would treat receipt of essential public benefits (such as Medicaid, SNAP and Section 8 housing subsidies), low income, poor health, being young or elderly and lack of English proficiency (among other factors) as negative factors in assessing an immigrant’s application for lawful permanent resident status.
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Last week I started a two-week SNAP Challenge which entails eating on the amount of food stamps benefits a SNAP recipient would receive: $4.40 per day.

With Week 1 completed, I wanted to share some of my reflections on the experience so far. Below are some of my biggest takeaways from Week 1 and my daily SNAP journal: Read more →

Every October, people wear purple to increase awareness about the prevalence of domestic violence and show solidarity with survivors. Domestic Violence Awareness Month increases education about the prevalence of domestic violence, common indicators of abusive relationships, and resources for survivors of domestic violence. While many people are familiar with the controlling patterns of physical and emotional abuse associated with domestic violence, you may be surprised to learn that 99% of victims of domestic violence experience financial abuse. Read more →