Ownership & Assets

Given the demonstrated link between transportation and employment, wouldn’t it be counterproductive to force families to surrender or downgrade their car in order to be eligible for assistance?

This recession marks the first time since welfare reform that policymakers are revisiting the social safety net.

Yet when thousands of families are struggling to find and keep employment, some on Beacon Hill threatened to cut the one tool proven effective in moving families from welfare to work: a car.

Media Contact Liz Wu California Media Relations Manager 510-295-9859 wu@newamerica.net

Media Contact Liz Wu California Media Relations Manager 510-295-9859 wu@newamerica.net

A child in Uganda, orphaned when his parents died of AI DS, is off the streets and avoiding AI DS himself by saving money for secondary school with the support of the innovative Suubi project, which provides poor children with Child Development Accounts. In China's western Xinjiang region, a poor rural farmer sees his "dead," or untouchable, pension savings become "live," or usable income-producing assets, thanks to the work of a visionary local government bureaucrat.

One group, the New America Foundation, a left-leaning think tank sensitive to consumer causes, has had at least a dozen conversations with top White House officials in person and over the phone, according to policy director Ellen Seidman. ...

Ellen Seidman, special assistant on economic policy for former President Bill Clinton, said that while Obama's efforts are innovative and likely to help, the administration might still need to cope with political fallout from small business failures. ...

Ellen Seidman, a special assistant for economic policy in the Clinton White House who also held senior positions at the Treasury Department and Fannie Mae, questions whether Obama will get the economic bounce he needs to declare victory, ...

Olivia Calderon of the New America Foundation said New York found it successful in overcoming fears by the banks and the community in dealing with banks. "If you didn't grow up with a bank on your corner, it's not part of your everyday experience," ...

LOS ANGELES, CA - Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcón today announced the launch of a Banking Development District Initiative in Los Angeles. The act was inspired by New York State's Banking Development District program and uses state and local deposits to encourage banks to open branches in lower-income neighborhoods and develop products and services tailored to local residents.    

The New America Foundation and the Center for Social Development, a unit of Washington University in St. Louis, on Thursday announced a joint effort to study "529" plans, with a specific goal of making them more attractive to low-income families. ...