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Overview: Attention on the Hill remains focused on the midterm elections, to be held on November 8. Discussion continues about a possible end-of-the-year budget agreement or a possible continuing resolution to keep the government funded past December 16. Advocacy manual: As mentioned at the Annual Gathering social policy community-of-practice meeting in Baltimore last month, the CCUSA social policy team has updated an advocacy manual that can now be accessed on the CCUSA website. From the home page, the user clicks on the “Advocacy” tag, which takes the user to the Advocacy page. Scroll down to “Resources,” where one can find the manual, titled “Faith, Action, Justice: A Manual for Legislative Advocacy.” Advocacy webinar: Hold November 14 at 1:30 p.m. EST for a webinar to discuss the midterm election results and what to expect for the rest of the congressional calendar. Details and registration will follow soon. Faithful citizenship: In preparation for the upcoming midterm elections, Anthony Granado, vice president of government relations at CCUSA, spoke on the political responsibility of Catholics on a webinar sponsored by the New Jersey Catholic Conference. Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, Diocese of Paterson also spoke about Catholics' responsibility in the public square. Read an article describing the event here. Advocacy/social policy meeting: On Tuesday, members of the CCUSA social policy team met with their counterparts from the Catholic Health Association and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops at the CHA office in Washington, DC, in order to discuss policy priorities for the end of the year and potential areas for collaboration. Discussion topics included life issues in a post-Dobbs world, especially ways to help pregnant women such as extending Medicaid postpartum coverage to 12 months; telehealth; Medicaid reimbursement rates; healthy housing; etc.  Pictured from left to right: Anthony Granado, vice president of government relations at CCUSA; Frankie Chevere, senior manager of policy and government affairs at CCUSA; Julie Bodnar, policy advisor at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; and Ron Jackson, senior director of government affairs at CCUSA, attend a meeting at the Washington, DC office of the Catholic Health Association (CHA) on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2022. The meeting brought together advocacy and social policy staff from CCUSA, CHA, and the USCCB. (Photo/David Werning) |
USDA grants: The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced $14.2 million in 52 grants that support urban agriculture, in part with funds from the American Rescue Plan Act. The projects will help recipients “expand access to nutritious foods, foster community engagement, increase awareness of climate change and mitigate the effects within urban areas, provide jobs, educate communities about farming, and expand green spaces,” according to USDA. HUD Announcements: Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Secretary Marcia L. Fudge announced the first deployment of funding through the Department’s new Rapid Unsheltered Survivor Housing (RUSH) program, a rapid response program to address homelessness by filling in federal assistance gaps in communities hit by disasters. The first round of funding will consist of $6.8 million to Florida and seven of the state’s localities impacted by Hurricane Ian. Read more here. Secretary Fudge will hold a virtual ‘House Party’ on November 1, 2022, at 6:30 EDT to share information on available federal resources and bust common myths around the homebuying process. This event is designed to encourage young adults who wish to become homeowners but feel the barriers are too steep, especially in communities of color. Several special guests will join Secretary Fudge, including young adults with lived experience of becoming a homeowner. The event is free and open to the public. The ‘party’ takes place November 1 at 6:30 p.m. EDT. The event will stream live on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. We encourage you to share broadly. Registration is available at www.hud.gov/hudhousepartyregistration. Economy: In the week ending October 22, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial [unemployment] claims was 217,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 214,000. The 4-week moving average was 219,000, an increase of 6,750 from the previous week's unrevised average of 212,250. Building Civic Bridges Act: CCUSA joins other organizations in endorsing the Building Civic Bridges Act (H.R. 6843 and S. 4530). This bill would promote the ability of local communities to tackle sources of division while empowering participants and civic organizations to bridge divides and promote civility. Read the full letter here. Immigration: Last week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the designation of Ethiopia for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months. Only individuals who are already residing in the United States as of October 20, 2022, will be eligible for TPS. DHS is expected to announce the registration period for eligible applicants in the coming days. |
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