Boston Housing Crisis: New law prioritizes converting city property into affordable homes
It’s been more than a year since The Pryde opened its doors in Boston’s Hyde Park neighborhood. And in that time, the former school building has become more than just an affordable housing option for older LGBTQ+ adults.
Meeting the AI Moment: New America’s Civic AI Summit
Last week in Boston, New America’s RethinkAI initiative brought together leaders from local and state governments, universities, civil society, and corporations for the Civic AI Summit: a day dedicated to reimagining how artificial intelligence can serve the public good. At a moment when governments at all levels grapple with how to harness AI responsibly, the summit catalyzed shared learning and honest dialogues about the opportunities and challenges ahead.
As Medicaid Cuts Loom, Here’s What’s at Stake for Families
The story of Medicaid and its role in the United States cannot be told without addressing its profound impact on the health and well-being of families. As the largest health insurer in the country, Medicaid provides coverage to over 77 million people, including two in every five children. Despite its foundational importance, Medicaid is often misunderstood and undervalued, and looming cuts threaten to unravel the safety net it provides. These cuts risk devastating ripple effects, not just on healthcare access, but on housing, hunger and the overall stability of families.
First, the Trump administration cut SNAP benefits. Now it wants to stop measuring food insecurity
An old business adage suggests that “what gets measured gets managed.” By that logic, we will no longer “manage” food insecurity in the United States after the Trump administration announced on September 20 plans to cancel the Household Food Security in the United States report, a long-running annual report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Reducing homelessness in the US: A solutions-focused, research-based explainer
In any municipality trying to serve and shelter homeless people in the U.S., journalists are likely to find a patchwork, decentralized support system, along with federal dollars being directed by state officials toward local governments and nonprofit organizations.There is no single model or method for governments to provide services to homeless people, according to the authors of a 2024 analysis published in the Public Administration Review.
Failure to Pass a UN Declaration on Noncommunicable Diseases is Not an Excuse for Inaction
Near the end of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly last week, Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) and mental health took center stage in a Fourth High-Level Meeting focused on common ground and solutions. I was optimistic that there would be real momentum to act, as NCDs remain a leading cause of death and disability across the world and the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) to reduce premature mortality from NCDs is off track by a third.
Louisville’s Anti-Displacement Commission finally gets off the ground
Members of Louisville’s Anti-Displacement Commission met for the first time Tuesday afternoon. The meeting was a long time in the making. The Louisville Metro Council passed the Anti-Displacement Law nearly two years ago. It directed city officials to work with researchers to develop a tool that could analyze proposed developments and determine if they were likely to displace neighborhood residents through higher rents or property taxes. Any project that would lead to displacement would no longer be eligible for public funding.
The cities where buying a house is most and least affordable as mortgage rates change
When mortgage rates dropped to historic lows in 2021, below 3 percent, Britt Vaughan met with a real estate agent and tried to buy a home in Altadena, California, where he and his wife have lived for more than a decade. Vaughan, who works for a Los Angeles city agency, and his wife, a marriage and family therapist, had a budget and knew what they could afford. Month after month, he scrolled through real estate sites and fell into the gloomy habit of looking up the price of every house he passed with a “for sale” sign. But with student loans, and such unexpected events as a car crash and wildfire damage eating into their savings, they never felt ready to buy. All the while, home prices and mortgage rates kept climbing.
Kaine, Schiff, & Peters Introduce Bill to Protect Veterans and Low-Income Families from Housing Discrimination
Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), a former fair housing attorney, and Adam Schiff (D-CA), alongside U.S. Representative Scott Peters (D-CA-50), introduced the bicameral Fair Housing Improvement Act of 2025 to protect veterans and low-income families from housing discrimination. This legislation would expand protections to all veterans and low-income individuals by adding source of income (SOI) and veteran and military status to the list of protected classes under the Fair Housing Act of 1968, giving more people access to affordable housing.
Healey wants to speed up state review to encourage housing. Will it work?
Gov. Maura Healey unveiled plans last week to slash environmental review requirements for certain developments, a move aimed at accelerating housing construction across Massachusetts. Experts say the proposal is unlikely to immediately ease the state’s deepening housing crisis. But it’s a step in the right direction.