J.B. Wogan

Recent Articles

• Furloughed Flood State Unemployment Offices
• Oct 1, 2013
• On the first day of the shutdown, state unemployment offices in the mid-Atlantic received an unusual number of applications from federal employees -- some getting more in one day than an entire year.
• 15 Comments

• Can Cities Learn to Let People Share?
• Oct 1, 2013
• Ride-sharing services and the uncertainty about how or whether to regulate them like taxi cabs illustrate a world where “ownership” is a rapidly changing concept.
• 1 Comments

• Federal Shutdown Could Disrupt Ceremony for Fallen Firefighters
• Oct 1, 2013
• A national memorial service for fallen firefighters would lose access to a venue, and other needed facilities, if the federal government shutdown persists.
• 2 Comments

• Poverty Rates Remain Stubbornly High in Big Cities
• Sep 24, 2013
• In 54 big cities and towns, at least a quarter of the population lived below the federal poverty line last year, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
• 16 Comments

• Breaking Down the Traditional Caseworker Model
• Sep 1, 2013
• Facing smaller staffs and budgets, nearly every state or local agency serving the poor has struggled to do so in a timely manner. A new approach in Connecticut is getting social services to people cheaper and faster.
• 6 Comments

• HUD Emergency Funds to Soften Sequester's Impact
• Aug 27, 2013
• Local housing authorities are in dire straits. Without funds, some may have to eliminate rental assistance.
• 2 Comments

• Oakland's Debit-ID Cards Catching On
• Aug 8, 2013
• In the hopes of helping immigrants and the unbanked, the city was the nation's first to offer cards that act as an ID and a prepaid debit card. For a product targeted at low-income people, though, critics charge the cards are too expensive.
• 6 Comments

• Should Reckless People Pay to Get Rescued?
• Aug 1, 2013
• At least three states already allow and more are considering allowing localities to charge citizens for what can be dangerous and expensive rescues that occur when recklessness (like kayaking during a flood) is involved.
• 11 Comments

• Cities Launch Anti-Poverty Centers
• Jul 30, 2013
• With federal support for social service programs dwindling, cities are looking for new ways to combat poverty.
• 2 Comments

• After Newtown, Conn. Codifies Pet Therapy for Kids
• Jul 26, 2013
• State officials found dogs to be helpful therapeutic aids for counseling the surviving children of the mass school shooting. A new law may make Connecticut the first state with a formal animal-assisted therapy program for trauma victims.
• 2 Comments

• When Mayors Talk Crime, Does it Mean Anything?
• Jul 1, 2013
• Mayors talk a lot about lowering crime, according to a new study, but their words often carry no weight for creating change.

• Localities Praise Passage of Immigration Bill
• Jun 28, 2013
• Local government associations support the basic principles for immigration reform that are in the Senate bill.

• Mississippi AG Jim Hood: The Last Democrat in Dixie
• Jun 28, 2013
• Somebody forgot to tell Mississippi’s attorney general that his party doesn’t win in the Deep South anymore.
• 6 Comments

• Who Should Regulate Guns?
• Jun 28, 2013
• After gun control measures failed in Washington, states are taking matters into their own hands.
• 2 Comments

• New Child Well-Being Rankings Released
• Jun 25, 2013
• The 2013 Kids Count data from the Annie E. Casey Foundation had some unexpected surprises.