Housing and Housing Finance is a research focus of the Urban Institute. On this webpage there are links to various resources related to housing, such as Affordability, Credit Availability, Homelessness, and Multifamily Housing. Researchers at Urban analyze housing market trends as well as the efficacy of housing assistance programs to provide current information about the impacts of housing policy and finance to both policymakers and the public.

In this portfolio, the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) summarizes the work funded by their Division of Economic Independence in the field of welfare and family self-sufficiency in fiscal year (FY) 2016. OPRE funds both research and evaluation efforts, as well as efforts to circulate recent research, across five areas within this topic: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Employment and the Labor Market, Education and Training, Behavioral Science, and Cross-Cutting and Other Safety Net Research. In addition to reviewing FY 2016 work, the portfolio identifies key findings from several of these OPRE efforts.

The Office of Family Assistance will host a webinar on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) coordination. In this facilitated webinar, presenters will provide an overview of the structure of the LIHEAP block grant and the flexibility afforded to states in its administration and opportunities for coordination with TANF. Presenters from the states of Michigan and Pennsylvania will also discuss examples of different approaches to LIHEAP coordination with TANF and other supplemental funding streams, to maximize the reach of energy assistance to families in need.

This webinar has been rescheduled. An email alert will be sent when a new date is confirmed.

IMPACT 5000 is the District of Columbia Housing Authority’s (DCHA) initiative to increase support for the 5,000 children living in its properties. These children face several challenges, including food insecurity, economic uncertainty, and health issues. This resource includes materials from an event at Urban Institute at which a panel presented findings from a community needs assessment of residents of DCHA family properties.

The December issue of the SNAP to Skills Newsletter focuses on Michigan’s SNAP Employment & Training (SNAP E&T) program. Its own program, called Food Assistance Employment & Training, or FAE&T, is administered jointly by its Department of Health and Human Services and the Workforce Development Agency. In the future, Michigan plans to bring on additional partners, deepen the collaboration between agencies, and develop a Partner Handbook.

Based on provisions in the Affordable Care Act, approximately 180,000 youth who have aged out of the foster care system are eligible for extended health care coverage through age 26. However, only 13 states have made Medicaid coverage available to all former foster youth residing in that state. This brief from the National Center for Children in Poverty explores the health needs of youth in and aging out of foster care, restrictions applied by states, and recommendations that may help legislators remove barriers to access.

The Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study suggests that fathers are more likely to struggle with depression when they do not have full-time employment, live apart from their children, have children with two or more women, or have been incarcerated. This tip sheet from the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse helps fatherhood programs best serve fathers who may be dealing with depression.

The Flexibility, Efficiency, and Modernization in Child Support Enforcement Programs final rule makes changes to strengthen the child support enforcement program. Additionally, it updates current processes to: increase regular, timely payments to families; increase the number of noncustodial parents supporting their children; and improve program operations.

In the United States, child welfare systems encounter many vulnerable children and their families each year. This report from the Center on the Developing Child examines how new science on child development can be applied to policies and practices to enhance child welfare systems, thereby improving outcomes for children and their families.

Throughout the past three years, the National Governors Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices has provided technical assistance to Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Kentucky, Michigan, New Mexico, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming to develop statewide plans to improve outcomes and reduce cost of care for high-need, high-cost Medicaid enrollees. This road map from NGA can be used by states across the country that are interested in housing as an element of improved health and a reduction of costly health services.