KatiM

About Kati Mapa

Kati Mapa is CWLA's Director of Public Policy.

House Judiciary Hearing on Immigration and Social Services

The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement held a hearing on Thursday, January 11, 2024, entitled, "The Impact of Illegal Immigration on Social Services." Witnessed included: Manuel Mello III, Fire Department Chief of Eagle Pass, Texas; Danyela Souza Egorov, Vice President of the Community Education Council for New York City School District

Improving Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Treatment Access: Webinar

On Thursday, January 11th, 2024, the National Academies of Sciences’ Committee on Strategies to Improve Access to Behavioral Health Care Services through Medicare and Medicaid hosted a virtual webinar on Innovations to Improve Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Access in Medicare, Medicaid, and Marketplace Insurance Plans. This was the third webinar in their series.

USDA’s New Summer Nutrition Program: Summer EBT

This summer, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will launch a new permanent nutrition assistance program known as Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer. Estimates suggest the program could reduce food insecurity and improve nutrition for 29 million school-aged children if implemented nationwide. As of January 1, 2024, over 30 states, territories, and Indian Tribal Organizations have announced

Congress Leaves Without Funding Agreement

Congress left Washington, D.C., on Thursday, December 14, 2023, without reaching an agreement on funding for FY2024, a bad sign for the new year. Although the Senate is expected to be back this week to work out an agreement on aid for Ukraine, Israel, and new immigration policies for the southern border, it’s unclear if

Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Continues Foster Care Hearings

On Thursday, December 14, 2023, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law held it’s fourth hearing on foster care as part of the bipartisan inquiry into Georgia’s child welfare system. Subcommittee Chairman Jon Ossoff (D-GA) opened the hearing by reminding those in the room that “we are talking about the most vulnerable

Point-In-Time Count Report Shows Increase in Homelessness

On December 15, 2023, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released it’s 2023 Annual Homeless Assessment Report: Part 1: Point-in-Time Estimates, which is an annual snapshot of the number of individuals in shelters, temporary housing, and in unsheltered settings. The report found more than 650,000 people were experiencing homelessness on a single night

State of LGBTQ+ Inclusion in Child Welfare: Report

Human Rights Campaign (HRC) announced the release of the All Children - All Families team's latest report, The State of LGBTQ+ Inclusion in Child Welfare. As is highlighted in the report, we are ecstatic to announce that the ACAF program reached a record-breaking 172 child welfare agencies employing over 30,500 professionals and serving more than

Congress Stalls on Taxes and Appropriations

With only one work week left in the first year of the 118th Congress, lawmakers have stalled on a number of top priorities, including appropriations and a forthcoming tax package, as well as supplemental funding for both foreign and domestic policies. On the tax policy front, there continues to be talk about a bipartisan package

CWLA Endorses: Poverty Line Act

On December 6, 2023, Representative Kevin Mullin (D-CA) introduced the Poverty Line Act, which would update the way the Federal government calculates the federal poverty line by accounting for real costs and adjusting for regional differences. This would make millions more families eligible for safety net programs such as Medicaid, SNAP (food stamps), LIHEAP (energy

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