skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Monday, March 24, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

White House inadvertently texted top-secret Yemen war plans to journalist; MS egg prices stay high amid industry consolidation; Gallup native, others remembered on National Medal of Honor Day; Indiana inches closer to lifesaving law change.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

President Trump credits tariffs for a Hyundai Steel investment in Louisiana, but residents say the governor is betraying them over health concerns there; and other states double down on climate change as the Trump administration rolls back environmental regulations.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Cuts to Medicaid and frozen funding for broadband are both likely to have a negative impact on rural healthcare, which is already struggling. Plus, lawsuits over the mass firing of federal workers have huge implications for public lands.

MA community action agencies aim to restore antipoverty funds

play audio
Play

Monday, February 10, 2025   

Community action agencies in Massachusetts are asking state lawmakers to boost antipoverty programs as federal aid remains in limbo.

Gov. Maura Healy chose not to fund the agencies' line item in her proposed budget, putting critical services for people coping with food and housing insecurity at risk.

Pam Kuechler, president of the Massachusetts Association for Community Action, said a loss of funding would affect food pantries families rely on statewide.

"Things have not gotten better for folks and so we'll have to reduce the number of days," Kuechler projected. "We'll probably have to reduce the amount of food that we're able to distribute."

Kuechler said her agency's food pantry in New Bedford helped nearly 14,000 people last year alone. The agencies are requesting $7.5 million for the more than 600,000 people in Massachusetts they serve.

Community action agencies said programs offering fuel assistance, workforce development and free tax preparation to secure tax credits are more vital than ever. Data show roughly 70,000 children in Massachusetts are living in what's considered "deep poverty," or 50% below the poverty level.

Sen. Sal DiDomenico, D-Everett, said with federal aid now uncertain, it is important the agencies get the funding they need.

"This is not just money. People can feel it," DiDomenico emphasized. "This is just something that we have to get done and we have to make sure that we protect."

DiDomenico noted the Legislature's Special Commission on Poverty will release an omnibus bill this session with recommendations on how to address the state's historic wealth gap and better support programs proved to be effective in reducing poverty. He added it includes direct cash assistance, which helps families survive.

Disclosure: The Massachusetts Association for Community Action contributes to our fund for reporting on Housing/Homelessness, Hunger/Food/Nutrition, Poverty Issues, and Social Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Past legislation, like the Promoting Offshore Wind Energy Resources Act, has pushed Maryland toward its clean energy goals of 8.5 gigawatts of wind energy production in the next few years. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

As President Donald Trump rolls back clean energy initiatives at the federal level, states like Maryland are pushing ahead with their own energy …


Environment

play sound

Texas would be one of five states to suffer the most if the Trump administration repeals the Inflation Reduction Act, according to a report from the …

Environment

play sound

A local nonprofit with a mission to advance regenerative agriculture is hoping its new video can open up an untapped world of science to a younger aud…


An intergenerational dialogue held on Jan. 29 brought together participants from ages 8 to 82 to discuss important issues, post-election. (Ed Ritger)

Social Issues

play sound

In these divisive times, nonprofit groups are stepping up to boost civic engagement by facilitating intergenerational dialogue. The Creating …

Social Issues

play sound

By Angela Hart for KFF Health News.Broadcast version by Suzanne Potter for California News Service reporting for the KFF Health News-Public News Servi…

Roughly 150 cities in 32 states have passed homelessness ordinances, according to the National Criminal Justice Association. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Next month, the city of Morgantown, West Virginia, will ask residents to vote on whether to keep or eliminate a city ordinance banning camping on …

Social Issues

play sound

Some 29 Arkansas Medal of Honor recipients will be recognized Tuesday as the National Medal of Honor Museum opens in Arlington, Texas. The museum is …

Social Issues

play sound

There are only 26 affordable housing units in Colorado for every 100 low-income households, according to a new report listing Colorado as the sixth …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021