Social Welfare Law Commons^™

Differential Response: A Dangerous Experiment In Child Welfare, Elizabeth Bartholet

Florida State University Law Review

Differential Response represents the most important child welfare initiative of the day, with Differential Response programs rapidly expanding throughout the country. It is designed to radically change our child welfare system, diverting the great majority of Child Protective Services cases to an entirely voluntary system. This Article describes the serious risks Differential Response poses for children and the flawed research being used to promote it as “evidence based.” It puts the Differential Response movement in historical context as one of a series of extreme family preservation movements supported by a corrupt merger of advocacy with research. It argues for reform …

Perspectives - Cannon Design’S Open Hand Studio, James Hagy, Sahar Nikanjam

Rooftops Project

Not only can architects create great space, they can also inspire better connections between the built environment and the social sector. John Syvertsen, Chris Lambert, and Ashley Marsh talk with Sahar Nikanjam and Professor James Hagy of The Rooftops Project about their work with not-for-profit organizations through architectural firm Cannon Design’s Open Hand Studio initiative.

Professor Gerald Korngold On Conservation Easements, James Hagy, Katherine Disalvo, Naveed Fazal

Rooftops Project

The Rooftops Project’s Katherine DiSalvo and Naveed Fazal talk with New York Law School Professor and conservation easement scholar, Gerald Korngold.

Profiles - The Rubin Museum Of Art, James Hagy, Payal Thakkar

Rooftops Project

For over two centuries, New York City’s arts and culture have been enhanced by visionary founders of museums designed to house collections the founders themselves treasured. That tradition continues with the installation of a remarkable collection in the equally remarkable transformation of a former clothing store. The Rooftops Project’s Payal Thakkar and Professor James Hagy visit with Patrick Sears, Executive Director of The Rubin Museum of Art in New York City.

Profile - Human Rights Watch, James Hagy, Mehgan Gallagher

Rooftops Project

Rooftops Project Profile - Human Rights Watch - Every day, not-for-profit organizations face “stay or move” choices when they approach the end of their leases. Making predictions about space, and making space work, can be challenging. How did one such organization assess its choices as a tenant in one of the most iconic buildings in Manhattan? The Rooftops Project’s Mehgan Gallagher speaks with David Bragg at Human Rights Watch.

Affordable Housing For Sustainable Cities: A North American Perspective, Detroit Metropolitan Area And Montreal (Quebec), Courtney Lauren Anderson, Maryse Grandbois

Faculty Publications By Year

Housing is an integral part to elevating and maintaining a quality of life to ensure a healthy and productive citizenship. The overwhelming number of citizens in Montreal and the United States who are unable to find housing that is less than 33% of their income stifles that economic progression of individuals and the society in which these individuals live. The ability for cities to dictate their own plans for creating and maintaining affordable housing without mandates from the federal vacillates among the various levels of government with each level having certain positive and negative elements. Although city autonomy can provide …

The Smart Cities Movement And Advancing The International Battle To Eliminate Homelessness - Barcelona As Test Case, John Travis Marshall, Jessica Venegas

Faculty Publications By Year

Barcelona is a leader in the smart cities movement, a movement that aims to help cities deliver services to citizens more efficiently and economically as a way of making the city a more inviting and inclusive place to live and work. As with any city committed to forward-looking economic, social, and urban development initiatives, it is important to consider whether ambitious goals to reinvent the city include an agenda to solve the persistent problems that have faced major cities for decades, including affordable housing and caring for roofless or homeless men and women. This article ties together the challenges Barcelona …

Alleviating Barcelona's Public Housing Shortages Through Historic Properties, Ryan Rowberry

Faculty Publications By Year

Creating public housing space in Barcelona requires rethinking how its historic properties might maintain their cultural and structural vitality while serving critical social and economic needs. Drawing on programs from the United States, Europe, and China, I suggest two strategies that Catalan officials might use to effectively leverage Barcelona's historic properties to reduce its public housing deficit. The first strategy considers successful financial incentives promoting public housing in historic properties within the United States - the Low Income Housing Tax Credit and the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit - and proposes how the Catalan government might find seed money to fund …

State-To-State Child Adoption Variations: A Political Culture Perspective, Erica Trabing

Political Science Theses and Capstones

The domestic adoption system throughout the United States has been complex yet crucial in starting millions of families over the years. About 7 million Americans are considered adopted persons, and as many as 100 million Americans have adoption in their immediate families. Though these numbers seem impressive, there are still 130,000 children in the U.S. foster care system waiting to be adopted. Adoptions in the US fall into one of three main categories. The first is adoption of children from the public foster care system, the second is adoption through private adoption agencies or independently, and the final category is …

Flourishing Rights, Wendy A. Bach

Michigan Law Review

There is something audacious at the heart of Clare Huntington’s Failure to Flourish. She insists that the state exists to ensure that families flourish. Not just that they survive, or not starve, or be able, somehow, to make ends meet—but that they flourish. She demands this not just for some families but, importantly, for all families. This simple, bold, and profoundly countercultural demand allows Huntington to make a tremendously convincing case that the state can begin to do precisely that. Failure to Flourish is a brave, rigorously produced, carefully researched, and politically astute book. Huntington seeks to persuade a wide …

Rights At Risk In Privatized Public Housing, Jaime Alison Lee

All Faculty Scholarship

Traditional public housing is dwindling. Federal policy has increasingly encouraged privatization, shifting stewardship of public housing out of the hands of government and into the hands of private, for-profit companies. Privatization in this context has both benefits and risks. A particularly compelling area of study is the attempt by lawmakers to conscript private contractors into serving public policy goals. Private landlords are obligated not merely to provide housing, but to conduct themselves in ways that promote the interests of vulnerable people. The case of public housing suggests that legislative mandates and contractual obligations are not enough to assure this outcome, …

Next Generation Tanf: Reconceptualizing Public Assistance As A Vehicle For Financial Inclusion, Aleta Sprague

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Fifty years into the War on Poverty, the ability to fully participate in American economic life is predicated on access to basic financial services and mechanisms; yet, public programs designed to support the economic advancement of people in poverty often explicitly excludeinte nded beneficiaries from meaningful engagement with financial institutions. To promote economic opportunity for families accessing public assistance, we need policy reforms that both remove access barriers and create entry points to the financial mainstream. Safe and affordable financial products are foundational to financial inclusion. Unbanked and "underbanked" households-the vast majority of which are low-income---often rely on high-cost credit, …

Revisiting The War On Poverty: How Policy Can Better Shape The Income And Wages Of Families With Children, Joy Moses

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Fifty years ago, President Lyndon B. Johnson launched a "War on Poverty" while delivering his first State of the Union address on January 8, 1964. His language conveyed ambitious plans to recreate American society:This budget, and this year's legislative program, are designed to help each and every American citizen fulfill his basic hopes-his hopes for a fair chance to make good; his hopes for fair play from the law; his hopes for a full-time job on full-time pay; his hopes for a decent home for his family in a decent community; his hopes for a good school for his children …

The Real Marriage Penalty: How Welfare Law Discourages Marriage Despite Public Policy Statements To The Contrary - And What Can Be Done About It, Spencer Rand

University of the District of Columbia Law Review

Couples regularly complain about marriage penalties,' discovering that the tax consequences of marrying make the cost of marriage prohibitive.2 Although attempts were made in the last decade to reduce those penalties for the middle class,3 the poor were not helped by these changes. 4 Along with tax penalties, including low-income wage earners facing severe decreases or becoming entirely ineligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) when they marry, the most common penalties reduce or eliminate government benefits upon marriage.

Insuring Floods: The Most Common And Devastating Natural Catastrophes In America, Christopher French

Faculty Scholarship

Flooding is the most common natural catastrophe Americans face, accounting for 90% of all damage caused by natural catastrophes. Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, for example, collectively caused over $160 billion in damage, but only approximately 10% of the Hurricane Katrina victims and 50% of the Hurricane Sandy victims had insurance to cover their flood losses. Consequently, both their homes and lives were left in ruins in the wake of the storms. Nationwide, only approximately 7% of homeowners have insurance that covers flood losses even though the risk of flooding is only increasing as coastal areas continue to be developed and …

Abolish Anonymous Reporting To Child Abuse Hotlines, Dale Margolin Cecka

Catholic University Law Review

All states allow the public to anonymously report suspicions of child abuse or neglect to a toll free central phone number. An extensive examination of the policy and practices behind anonymous reporting hotlines indicates that they are widely unregulated and susceptible to abuse. The possible repercussions of an anonymous phone call create costs to the family and society which do not outweigh the potential benefit of allowing anonymous public reports. Under the guise of protecting children, the law has developed in such a way that it infringes on the fundamental rights of parents and children. At the same time, anonymous …

Comments: Private Investment: Trojan-Horse Or Shining Knight For America's Public Housing Stock, Andrew Balashov

University of Baltimore Journal of Land and Development

The numbers are staggering. The nation's largest public housing authorities ("HA's") are in a state of crisis as a result of massive budget shortfalls. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates it would take roughly $26 billion to remedy the problem. To put this in perspective, in 2014 the New York City Public Housing Authority had a $77 million deficit and $18 billion worth of "unfunded capital improvements," - a euphemism for basic upgrades to building systems such as water, heat, air conditioning, and elevators. At present, many of these systems are woefully below acceptable livability standards. This …

Medicaid Planning For Long-Term Care: California Style, John A. Miller

Articles

No abstract provided.

Is Medicare Advantage Entitled To Bring A Private Cause Of Action Under The Medicare Secondary Payer Act?, Jennifer Jordan

William Mitchell Law Review

No abstract provided.

‘The Greatest Wealth Is Health’: Patient Protected Health Information In The Hands Of Hackers, 31 J. Marshall J. Info. Tech. & Privacy L. 657 (2015), Samantha Singer

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

This comment will analyze the specific requirements and stages that EPs/EHs must comply with in order to receive its Medicare and Medicaid incentives, how EHR technologies are being implemented, how EHR technologies are affecting patients' privacy with regard to hacking a patient‟s PHI, and what EHR technology vendors and EPs/EHs should be doing to improve patient privacy and security to prevent hacking and other breaches.

Part I of this comment will address hacking of PHI. Part II will analyze the security measures that EHR vendors must currently incorporate into EHR technology and how the lack of required security measures impacts …

Returning Citizens: How Shifting Law And Policy In Maryland Will Help Citizens Who Return From Incarceration, Khyla D. Craine, Esq., Glenn E. Martin

University of Baltimore Law Forum

In America, the concept of “time served” is a misnomer, as the shackles of a lifetime of collateral consequences make a criminal record a scathing obstacle for over 100 million Americans. Each year, more than 650,000 people are expected to reintegrate into our communities, often with substance abuse and mental health issues, minimal education, no job to sustain a life, and no stable home awaiting them.

While these numbers are staggering on their own, they do not reflect the even larger number of people who cycle through the court system and jails. For example, some take pleas for a lesser …

Health Justice: A Framework (And Calll To Action) For The Elimination Of Health Inequity And Social Injustice, Emily A. Benfer

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Antitrust, Competition Policy, An Inequality, Jonathan Baker, Steven Salop

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Economic inequality recently has entered the political discourse in a highly visible way. This political impact is not a surprise. As the U.S. economy has begun to recover from the Great Recession since mid-2009, economic growth has effectively been appropriated by those already well off, leaving the median household less well off. The serious economic, political and moral issues raised by inequality can be addressed through a panoply of public policies including competition policy, the focus of this article. The article describes the channels through which market power contributes to inequality, and sets forth a range of possible antitrust policy …

A Government Success Story: How Data Analysis By The Social Security Appeals Council (With A Push From The Administrative Conference Of The United States) Is Transforming Social Security Disability Adjudication, Jeffrey Lubbers, Gerald K. Ray

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

This Article for the special issue on the Administrative Conference of the United States ("ACUS") focuses on how a collaboration between ACUS and the Social Security Administration ("SSA") has helped SSA use data analysis to bring about significant improvements in the quality and consistency of disability case review. SSA's efforts to closely analyze numerous data points in the disability adjudication process (encouraged by ACUS recommendations) have produced information that has led to breakthroughs in how training is provided and feedback is given to Administrative Law Judges and other key staff, which has in turn led to improved productivity and accuracy …

Destabilizing Property, Ezra Rosser

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Property theory has entered into uncertain times. Conservative and progressive scholars are, it seems, fiercely contesting everything, from what is at the core of property to what obligations owners owe society. Fundamentally, the debate is about whether property law works. Conservatives believe that property law works. Progressives believe property law could and should work, though it needs to be made more inclusive. While there have been numerous responses to the conservative emphasis on exclusion, this Article begins by addressing a related line of argument, the recent attacks information theorists have made on the bundle of rights conception of property. This …

Changing Course In The Anti-Domestic Violence Legal Movement: From Safety To Security, Margaret E. Johnson

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Lack Of Deference To Medical Opinions In Adjudicating Social Security Disability Claims, Amrita Maharaj

Buffalo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Silliness Of Erisa: The Plan Is Not The Only Proper Party Defendant In An Erisa Benefits Claim, Don T. Bogan

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Profiles - Chicago Literacenter, James Hagy

Rooftops Project

Business news is often filled with stories about incubator spaces and entrepreneurial hubs in which start-up companies can hang out, network, and grow. What might result when these concepts are adapted to bring together diverse not-for-profit organizations focused on similar missions? Professor James Hagy visits Stacy Ratner, Co-Founder and Creative Director of the Chicago Literacy Alliance, and Transwestern’s Larry Serota at the grand opening of Literacenter in downtown Chicago.

Assessing Soldiers' Mental Health: Meeting The Needs Of Veterans With Ptsd, Tbi, And Cte—Pre-Deployment, At Home, And In Court, Robert H. Ambrose

William Mitchell Law Review

No abstract provided.