Public Benefits – Voices for Civil Justice

Welfare debts hobble working poor as they re-enter workforce

News Story (New York)

Welfare debts hobble working poor as they re-enter workforce

December 5, 2018 | Sandra Tan | Buffalo News
Thousands of Erie County welfare recipients each year are on the hook to repay money they should never have received.
Tags: Public Benefits

SSI backlog: Thousands around Philly waiting more than two years for disability hearing

News Story (Pennsylvania)

SSI backlog: Thousands around Philly waiting more than two years for disability hearing

January 5, 2018 | Philadelphia Inquirer
Across the country, more than one million people are waiting — sometimes for more than two years — for an appeal hearing to determine whether they qualify for these disability benefits.
Tags: Public Benefits

D.C. Food Stamp Recipients Say New Computer System Left Them Without Benefits

Audio, News Story (District of Columbia)

D.C. Food Stamp Recipients Say New Computer System Left Them Without Benefits

November 30, 2017 | Sasha-Ann Simons | WAMU (DC)
Three more low-income D.C. residents have joined a group lawsuit against the District’s Department of Human Services (DHS) claiming that an electronic records management system implemented by the city agency last fall left their families without food.
Tags: Public Benefits

Did The Government Do Enough To Accommodate Disabled At D-SNAP Registration? Suit Says No

Audio, News Story (Florida, Texas)

Did The Government Do Enough To Accommodate Disabled At D-SNAP Registration? Suit Says No

November 14, 2017 | Wilson Sayre | WLRN (South Florida)
There’s an ongoing lawsuit that might reopen registration for some people with disabilities because, the suit claims, the lines to sign up were prohibitively long.
Tags: Disability Rights | Disaster Recovery | Public Benefits

Lawsuit alleges widespread problems in District-run food stamp program

News Story (District of Columbia)

Lawsuit alleges widespread problems in District-run food stamp program

August 28, 2017 | Ann E. Marimow | Washington Post
Low-income D.C. residents are not getting the help they need to buy groceries because of widespread problems with the District’s food stamp program, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court on Monday.
Tags: Public Benefits

Ohio budget bill ended cash assistance program for people with disabilities

News Story (Ohio)

Ohio budget bill ended cash assistance program for people with disabilities

August 7, 2017 | Jackie Borchardt | Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH)
The state stopped accepting new applications for the Disability Financial Assistance program July 1 -- a change buried in the 3,300-page state budget bill.
Tags: Disability Benefits | Public Benefits

Lives on hold, literally, laid-off in Pennsylvania can’t get jobless benefits

News Story (Pennsylvania)

Lives on hold, literally, laid-off in Pennsylvania can’t get jobless benefits

April 17, 2017 | Jane Von Bergen | Philadelphia Inquirer
What has Salvato in a tizzy is the near-collapse of Pennsylvania’s unemployment compensation system. In mid-December, the state closed three service centers and furloughed 521 workers, or a third of the people who deal with unemployment compensation.
Tags: Public Benefits | Unemployment Insurance