• Latest unemployed: Stimulus-subsidized workers, By Tami Luhby, October 1, 2010, CNNMoney.com: “Tens of thousands of low-income workers lost their jobs Thursday as a stimulus-subsidized employment program came to an end. About a quarter of a million people in 37 states were placed in short-term jobs thanks to a $5 billion boost to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. States used about $1 billion to provide subsidized employment, with the remaining funds going to cash grants, food programs, housing assistance and other aid. About half the jobs were summer employment for youth and the rest were for disadvantaged parents. Each state configured its initiative differently. Some covered all the workers’ wages for a few months, while others paid for a portion of their salary. With the program expiring, many of the adults have been told not to report to work anymore. And it won’t be easy for them to find a new position at time when the unemployment rate continues to hover at 9.6%…”
• Stimulus aid ends for jobs program, By Richard Wolf, October 1, 2010, USA Today: “Cepeda White is a poster child for the $814 billion economic stimulus package passed by Congress and signed by President Obama last year. Today, he nearly became one of its first casualties. That’s because federal subsidies ran out for a $5 billion program funded by the stimulus law that has provided 235,000 jobs in 36 states for low-income parents and young adults. The program, ending in some states and on life support in others, paid White’s $10-an-hour salary at the Nice Twice Thrift Shop here. For months, Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois, have tried to get the program extended. They ran into opposition from Republicans, including House Republican Whip Eric Cantor, who complained that the program funded direct welfare and emergency payments as well as subsidized jobs…”
• Despite latest poverty figures, Senate lets worthy jobs program lapse, Editorial, October 1, 2010, Washington Post: “The Census Bureau reported this week that more than one in four children in the District of Columbia lives in poverty. That includes 36 percent of African American children — compared with 3 percent for non-Hispanic white children. And the District was not alone in receiving grim news. The overall national child poverty rate is nearly 21 percent. Poverty rose last year in 31 states and fell in none. In some ways, the District is better off than most jurisdictions: The only places where median household income rose in 2009 were the District (2.8 percent) and North Dakota (5.1 percent). Children who grow up in poverty are more likely to be poor as adults. They lag behind early in intellectual development, tend to attend lower-quality schools and are more likely to drop out of high school. It’s not surprising that poverty would rise during an economic downturn. But the current recession — marked by increased levels of long-term unemployment and homelessness — could have a particularly brutal and long-lasting effect on the children hit by it…”

Unemployment rate drops in two-thirds of metro areas in August, By Christopher S. Rugaber (AP), September 29, 2010, USA Today: “Unemployment fell in nearly two-thirds of the nation’s 372 largest metro areas last month, the broadest improvement since May. The jobless rate dropped in 230 cities in August, the Labor Department said Wednesday. It rose in 95 cities and was flat in 47. That’s an improvement from the previous month, when rates fell in only 152 areas. Nationwide, unemployment ticked up in August to 9.6% from 9.5% the previous month. Businesses added a net total of 67,000 jobs, but about twice as many temporary census jobs ended. The metro report does not adjust its figures to take into account seasonal trends, such as high unemployment among agricultural workers before fall harvests begin. As a result, the figures can differ from the national trend and can be volatile from month to month…”

• Hard choices: Oregon can’t keep up with rising health, social services costs, By Michelle Cole, September 28, 2010, The Oregonian: “The Great Recession placed a heavy burden on Oregon: Nearly one in five people relies on the state to help put food on the table. More than 635,000 depended on government-provided health care last year. Tens of thousands of seniors, children and people with disabilities counted on the state for help. Looking ahead to the next state budget, it’s clear that Oregon cannot afford those same services for all who need them. Even if state government spent every dollar of new revenue on health and human services and none of that money on schools, police or prisons, it would still come up $200 million short. Complicating the math: More than $1 billion in federal stimulus and other supports that helped the Oregon Department of Human Services and the newly formed Oregon Health Authority cope with record demand will dry up as of July 1…”
• $281M cut from state social programs ‘devastating,’ advocates say, By Janet I. Tu and Carol M. Ostrom, September 29, 2010, Seattle Times: “Cutting programs for the mentally ill, disabled and poor elderly residents, the state’s Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) announced Wednesday a wide swath of reductions totaling nearly $281 million and bringing a flood of concern from advocates for the poor and vulnerable. The 6.3 percent across-the-board cuts, some of which will begin in October, include nearly $113 million of state funding for Medicaid programs providing hospice care to the dying, and medical care for those too disabled to work, children and pregnant women, among others. The cuts are being made in response to Gov. Chris Gregoire’s directive to pare spending to help balance the state’s budget, as required by the state constitution…”

California extends foster-care help to young adults, By Vauhini Vara, October 1, 2010, Wall Street Journal: “California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill Thursday extending foster-care support to young adults between the ages of 18 and 21, a move cited as a bellwether by child-welfare advocates. The new benefits ‘will ensure our foster youth have access to important resources as they transition into adulthood,’ Mr. Schwarzenegger said. Previously, benefits ended at age 18 or 19. Because a federal law enacted two years ago helps pay for such an extension and other foster-care services previously borne by the state, California-which faces a $19.1 billion budget deficit for the fiscal year ending in June-doesn’t expect to incur any additional costs. ..”