Last week, the Maryland General Assembly approved a bill that would require all state correctional facilities to have written medical-care policies for incarcerated pregnant women—the first of its kind in the country, according to NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland. Under the new legislation, which goes into effect in October, all facilities must submit to a legislative commission—and, […]
Blog: TAPPED
Posted inEconomic Policy
Welfare Drug Testing Promotes Stereotypes, Not Efficiency
Despite a clear lack of evidence of significant drug use among welfare recipients, lawmakers in at least two states are moving forward with plans to require drug screening for individuals seeking assistance. State legislators in Illinois and Iowa have introduced bills that would make drug testing a prerequisite for Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), […]
Posted inEconomic Policy
A Failed Fight for $8.50 Energizes the Fight for $15 in Louisiana
When a bill to raise the Louisiana minimum wage by just $1.25 failed, advocates didn’t reduce their demands—in fact, they did the opposite. On Tuesday, the Louisiana Senate voted against a bill that would have raised Louisiana’s minimum wage to $8.50 an hour by 2020. “Not advancing this legislation is a step backwards for our […]
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
Senate Democrats Warn Mitch McConnell: Don’t Try to Weaken the ADA
On Thursday, 42 Senate Democrats joined Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois to pledge to block a vote on the ADA Education and Reform Act (H.R. 620), a House bill that would gut the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act by weakening enforcement provisions that ensure accessibility in public accommodations. In a signed letter to Senate Majority […]
Posted inCivil Rights in America
Why the Kerner Commission Didn’t Move the Needle on Racial Justice
Five decades after President Johnson convened the Kerner Commission to investigate the roots of racial discrimination and violence in urban America, remarkably little has changed. That’s the conclusion of a new book co-authored by former Senator Fred Harris, the sole surviving member of the commission. Organized in the wake of deadly riots in more than […]
Posted inHealth and Social Policy
Studies Show Private-Sector Providers Are Not Ready to Care for Veterans
As Congress moves ahead with plans to outsource more and more veteran health care to the private sector, three high-profile studies should urge lawmakers to pump the brakes. The studies, published in recent weeks by RAND Corporation, Federal Practitioner, and the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine, spotlight serious flaws in private-sector veterans’ care […]
Posted inCivil Rights in America
Planned Parenthood Launches $20 Million Midterm Election Campaign
On Wednesday, Planned Parenthood announced a plan to invest $20 million in the 2018 midterm elections, the organization’s largest midterm campaign effort yet. The electoral battle plan initially targets gubernatorial and Senate races in eight states—Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—with plans to expand to other states and smaller races. Of those […]
Posted inEducation in America
West Virginia Communities Unite Behind Historic Teacher Strike
It’s day four of the West Virginia teachers’ strike, in which nearly 20,000 teachers across the state are demanding higher pay and better health insurance. On Tuesday, union leaders finally secured a meeting with Republican Governor Jim Justice—meaning the strike could end today if demands are met. The teachers, coordinated by the American Federation of […]
Posted inEducation in America
Urban Institute Study Finds Millions of Americans Live in Higher Education Deserts
Millions of American adults cannot access any type of higher education based on their location, according to a new study from the Urban Institute. Released last month, the report found that 3.1 million Americans, at least 1.3 percent of the adult population, live in a complete education desert: They have no public university available within […]
Posted inElection Night Blog
Black Women Will Be Most Affected by Janus
Janus v. AFSCME could profoundly affect the ability of public-sector workers to improve their wages and working conditions. The case threatens the right of the majority of workers to bargain with their public employer, through their democratically elected union. While the outcome of Janus will affect about 17 million public-sector workers across the country, black […]