CLASP submitted a public comment in support of Louisiana’s Section 1115 request to offer Medicaid-covered services to individuals 90-days prior to their release from incarceration from a public institution. We applauded the demonstration’s relatively broad eligibility criteria and use of the maximum pre-release eligibility period allowed by CMS. However, we also expressed concern over certain aspects of Louisiana’s implementation plan and asked CMS to consider these areas for improvement before approving the state’s waiver request:
The statement can be attributed to Olivia Golden, Interim Executive Director at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)
November 6, 2024, Washington, D.C.—Today, as we confront the prospect of a second Trump administration, we are deeply concerned about the significant impact of his administration’s policies. We know what his intentions are because he has stated them many times: to target immigrant communities, people of color, women, and LGBTQ Americans; to harm workers and people with low incomes, including threatening job protections and the right to unionize, for the benefit of billionaires; and to threaten core public programs and the capacity of public officials to do their jobs honestly, fairly, and without fear.
CLASP is prepared for this moment, informed by our experience in responding to the first Trump administration, which previewed all these threats. Our preparations include strengthening the powerful coalitions we are already engaged in, including those that protect immigrant families and children, and building new ones where needed; working with partners to build on our collective knowledge and expertise to slow down, minimize, and where possible prevent or mitigate damage; standing ready to build on our powerful past record of documenting the harm when it happens and telling the story to the public; moving the vision forward in the states; and bringing our deep knowledge into partnership with organizing and movement leaders.
CLASP has a long history of and commitment to advocating for the safety, rights, and economic security that families with low incomes, workers, children, and immigrants deserve. As these communities stand to lose the most under another Trump administration, it’s more important than ever that we remain steadfast in advocating for social, economic, and racial justice.
Donald Trump and his advisors have made no secret about their roadmap for administration priorities. It’s a path that will benefit the very wealthy while creating and exacerbating hardship for millions. CLASP fought the fight to resist these priorities and elevate a very different vision during his first administration, and we are committed to doing so again. As we prepare for this work, we are inspired by the partners who share this work with us.
By Janna Herron
(EXCERPT)
“One theme that really stuck out to me is just not only were these payments going towards bills, food and groceries,” said Ashley Burnside, a senior policy analyst at CLASP. “But it was also helping parents to be able to say yes to a lot of these experiences that their children wanted and to create these positive moments that can make parenthood and childhood so special.”
By: Suzanne Wikle
In 2024, a record 21.4 million people received their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplaces. Enrollment gains among Black, Latino, and people with low incomes drove the increased enrollment. Sustaining the policy choices that led to record enrollment and adding in long overdue eligibility for people with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status will be important to keep up the momentum and keep affordable health insurance available. With these policies in place, 2025 is poised to be another record-breaking year for Marketplace enrollment.
Several policies have led to this historic enrollment, but the gains are not guaranteed to stay, unless Congress acts.
Enhanced Premium Tax Credits
People receive premium tax credits to purchase health insurance through the ACA Marketplaces when they do not have other affordable options. The premium tax credits lower the amount people pay every month for their premiums. Starting in 2021 the tax credits were enhanced, making Marketplace plans much more affordable. People earning less than 150 percent of the federal poverty level can be insured for $0 monthly premium; for those who had out-of-pocket costs, their premiums were reduced an average of 44 percent.
Since the enhanced tax credits became available, 83 percent of the growth in Marketplace enrollment has been by people with incomes less than 250 percent of the federal poverty level. Black and Hispanic enrollment increased the most. Compared to 2020 (non-enhanced tax credits), enrollment in 2023 (with enhanced tax credits) increased by 95 percent among Black enrollees and 103 percent among Latino enrollees. Enrollment among American Indians and Alaskan Natives grew by 59 percent;, multiracial enrollment grew by 28 percent;, white enrollment grew by 25 percent;, and Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander enrollment grew by 14 percent.
What’s at stake: The enhanced tax credits for Marketplace enrollments are slated to end on December 31, 2025. Congress must act to extend or make permanent the enhanced tax credits that have led to record enrollment, particularly among people with low incomes and people of color. Without Congressional action, we can expect to see fewer people enrolling in Marketplace coverage, greater out-of-pocket costs for those who do enroll, and an increase in the number of people without health insurance. An individual making $21,000 per year would have to pay nearly $800 more in annual premiums, and a family of four making $60,000 would see an annual premium increase of $2,700.
DACA Eligibility for ACA Marketplace Tax Credits
When the annual open enrollment period begins on November 1, 2024, an exciting and long overdue new policy will take effect. People with DACA will be newly eligible to buy health insurance and receive tax credits through the Marketplace. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that around 100,000 people with DACA will enroll for 2025 coverage. The new policy also clarifies that other vulnerable youth, such as those who have been approved for Special Immigrant Juvenile status and those applying for asylum, will also be eligible for coverage.
What’s at stake: DACA eligibility for Marketplace coverage is being challenged by some states. Oral arguments were held on October 15, 2024, but at the time of publication, people with DACA will still be able to enroll in Marketplace coverage and receive tax credits when open enrollment begins on November 1, 2024.
The progress made connecting people with affordable health insurance options is the direct result of important policy changes. In order to continue the progress and not lose ground – especially for Black people, Latinos, DACA recipients, and immigrant youth – we must ensure the right policies stay in place. Congress must act to continue enhanced premium tax credits beyond 2025 and ensure DACA recipients and immigrant youth continue to have access to affordable health care.
By Parker Gilkesson Davis, Teon Hayes, Jesse Fairbanks, and CPG members Alice Aluoch, Barbie Izquierdo, and Tamika Moore
In the often-exclusive policy landscape of Washington, D.C., the Community Partnership Group (CPG) at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) seeks to change how policy is made and implemented. The CPG, a peer cohort of activists with lived experience navigating or being excluded from benefits programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), embodies the famous quote by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley:
“The people closest to the pain should be the closest to the power, driving and informing the policymaking.”
In 2019, CLASP sought to shift its work on public benefits to incorporate the perspectives and leadership of activists with lived experience navigating or being excluded from programs. This became the Community Partnership Group or CPG. This decision represented a new direction not just for CLASP, which wanted to change how policy was made and implemented, but an overall policy landscape that too often excludes the voices of those with lived experience. Comprised of individuals who have firsthand knowledge of poverty’s challenges, the CPG works closely with CLASP staff to shape policy and advocate for centering people with lived experience in the policy advocacy ecosystem. The group’s consistent collaboration rejects a deficit-based approach, which treats people living in poverty as a problem to be solved, and instead embodies an asset-based approach that values the insights and capabilities of those directly affected by poverty.
Traditionally, funding and policy decisions have often been dictated by external funders who, despite their best intentions, may not fully grasp the nuanced realities and strengths of those living in poverty. These approaches tend to focus on the limitations or needs of individuals without recognizing their existing assets and potential. An asset-based approach, however, recognizes and values the inherent strengths, insights, and capabilities of individuals directly affected by poverty. This paradigm shift is critical, as it empowers individuals as co-creators of the policies and practices that affect their lives, rather than viewing them merely as recipients of aid. Guided by a vision for community engagement that centers collaboration, the CPG aims to influence funders and policymakers to rethink how they support communities. Instead of imposing solutions, the asset-based approach involves listening to and learning from those with lived experiences to design interventions that are not only effective but also sustainable and respectful of the community’s own goals and visions.
This paper is not just the story of the CPG; it is a celebration of resilience, a testament to unity in diversity, and an ode to the relentless pursuit of equity. It traces the CPG’s journey from inception to impact and highlights not just what the group does but why it matters. This paper also examines the inevitable challenges and hard lessons that come with building something new and calls for a future where people experiencing poverty are at the center of the policy decisions that affect their lives. The CPG believes that meaningful partnerships between allies and impacted people that reject classism, racism, and other harmful systemic injustices serve as the bedrock of all successful efforts to advance economic and racial justice. Through healing-centered relationships with community members, advocates and policymakers can advance policies that are both effective and equitable, sustainable and liberatory.
CLASP submitted a comment urging the House Ways and Means Committee and Members of Congress to pass tax reforms that will benefit individuals and families with incomes under $400,000 in annual income, and to allow harmful provisions to expire on schedule from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that largely benefitted the very wealthy with incomes over $400,000 and corporations.
EXCERPT
During the pandemic, however, Trump approved individual stimulus payments. While the payments weren’t exactly the same as guaranteed income programs, it suggested the former president was open to using cash distributions to help people in financial crises, said Ashley Burnside, senior policy analyst at the Center for Law and Social Policy.
“I do think it shows this increasing awareness of how beneficial providing cash can be to families,” she said, adding that federal lawmakers could look to state and local governments for successful models.
By Ashley Burnside
This statement is submitted by staff from the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). CLASP staff are experts on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) policy and are committed to targeting TANF funds toward cash assistance for families with very low incomes. As summarized below, there is strong and growing evidence that monthly cash assistance improves children’s health and educational outcomes. While Mississippi’s abuse of TANF funds to provide favors to politically connected individuals is the most dramatic and egregious example of how states have used TANF funds for other purposes, it is unfortunately far from the only example of states allocating TANF dollars towards areas that are not aligned with the program goals or toward improving child outcomes. Congress should support policies to target TANF spending toward monthly cash assistance for families with very low incomes, and toward work supports and services that best meet the needs of parents facing financial emergencies, both by supporting the administrative actions taken by the Administration for Children and Families and by passing additional legislative guardrails.
CLASP is a national, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization whose mission is advocating for policies that advance economic and racial justice. Founded more than fifty years ago, CLASP works to develop and implement federal, state, and local policies that reduce poverty, improve the lives of people with low incomes, tear down barriers arising from systemic racism, and create pathways to economic security.
By Janie Ekere
EXCERPT
“What we would like to see is it made fully refundable in whatever tax bill that we see in 2025 so that the families with the lowest incomes can continue to receive it,” said Elizabeth Lower-Basch, deputy executive director of policy at the Center for Law and Social Policy. Refundability means that poorer families without any tax liability can still claim the credit. “That was the change that caused child poverty to be cut almost in half in 2021,” Lower-Basch said.
By Eddie Martin, Jr.
This is the fifth in a series of commentaries from CLASP experts that explore dimensions of poverty as part of the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual release of poverty, income, and health insurance coverage statistics from the previous year. On September 10, we provided a snapshot of the economic hardship that children, youth and young adults, and families experienced in 2023. Ahead of the release, CLASP experts offered key insights on the impending 2025 tax debate, the child care crisis, Medicaid unwinding, and raising labor standards and enacting new regulations to protect workers. The complete series is available here.
As we reflect on the U.S. Census Bureau’s recent poverty and income report—showing that more than 1 in 10 people in America live in poverty and documenting stubbornly higher poverty rates for Black, Hispanic and Native American people—it is crucial to revisit President Lyndon B. Johnson’s declaration 60 years ago of an “unconditional” War on Poverty. Johnson sought not only to address the symptoms of poverty but to “cure it and, above all, to prevent it.” He poignantly remarked that “many Americans live on the outskirts of hope—some because of their poverty, some because of their color, and all too many because of both.” Johnson understood that these issues were not the result of individual failures but were rooted in systemic inequities like limited access to education, health care, housing, and opportunities for upward mobility. He recognized poverty as a moral and societal challenge tied to short-sighted public policies that left too many Americans behind.
The War on Poverty led to significant programs like Head Start, Medicaid, and Medicare. At the time, the national poverty rate stood at 19 percent and was nearly double that for Black Americans. These programs reduced poverty and provided a safety net for millions. But the latest Census report shows that the 2023 poverty rate was 11.1 percent, revealing only marginal progress after six decades. Johnson’s vision has been hindered by political compromises and reforms that failed to tackle economic inequality and racial disparities.
A major shortcoming of the War on Poverty was its inability to fully address the intersection of racial injustice and economic inequity. Johnson’s Great Society agenda laid the groundwork for progress through landmark legislation like the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, which linked racial justice to economic opportunity. However, the failure to implement more “radical” solutions—such as guaranteed incomes or large-scale systemic reforms in housing, law enforcement, education, and civil rights enforcement—has meant that poverty, particularly for communities of color, persists.
Today, these shortcomings are glaringly apparent. The lack of affordable child care and early education continues to create economic instability for families. Black and Hispanic workers remain overrepresented in jobs without adequate benefits or wages, perpetuating the cycle of the “working poor.” The housing crisis, driven by rising costs and stagnant wages, has pushed many who were once part of the middle class to the brink of homelessness. Elected officials have failed to prioritize justice, and equity and progress has been painfully incremental, leaving children and families across the U.S. to suffer.
These interconnected challenges create a vicious cycle that deepens inequality and undermines democracy. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. emphasized, “the evils of racism, economic exploitation, and militarism are all tied together.” Poverty erodes both economic participation and political engagement. When individuals and communities are trapped in poverty, they are less able to participate in the democratic process, less likely to trust public institutions, and often deprived of basic human rights. Both Johnson and King understood that poverty is not just an economic issue—it is a fundamental threat to democracy itself.
To truly revive the War on Poverty and achieve Johnson’s vision, we must enact bold policies that create a strong safety net for workers and families. These measures should go beyond merely lifting people above the poverty line. Rather, we must ensure that economic progress is met with sustained access to benefits and opportunities. This means investing in an equitable, high-quality child care and early education system; enacting comprehensive minimum wage reform; strengthening labor laws; permanently expanding the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit; and ensuring universal health coverage that includes publicly funded care for immigrant populations, including the undocumented. As Olivia Golden, CLASP’s interim executive director, has stated, such bold approaches, grounded in both an economic strategy and the necessary investments in core programs, are vital to eliminating poverty. Without comprehensive support, poverty will remain episodic, trapping families in cycles of hardship across generations.
In 1967, King called for a “radical revolution of values,” urging society to shift from a “thing-oriented” to a “person-oriented” approach. He argued that poverty demands not just charity, but systemic change, stating “true compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar. It is seeing that an edifice that produces beggars needs restructuring. A true revolution of values will soon look uneasily on the glaring contrast of poverty and wealth.” King’s message remains as relevant today as it was in the 1960s. He recognized that to achieve true democracy, our country needed a complete reimagining of our economic and political systems rooted in a redistribution of power and wealth.
If we are ever to truly defeat systemic poverty, we must have a national awakening—a profound shift in values, driven by moral and political courage. We must ensure that all people, not just the fortunate few, have access to the resources and opportunities they need not only to survive but to thrive. This means dismantling the structural inequities that perpetuate racial and economic disparities while building a more just, compassionate, and equitable society for all. Only then can we realize the vision Johnson and King had of an America free from poverty, where opportunity and democracy are truly accessible to everyone.