The National Network to End Domestic Violence recently launched a new toolkit which provides comprehensive information about ensuring confidentiality and safety for victims of domestic and sexual violence. Included in the toolkit are templates, tip sheets, charts, sample policies and procedures and frequently asked questions relating to ensuring confidentiality. The toolkit can be a valuable resource for TANF programs who are seeking to enhance their services to domestic violence survivors. Additionally, the toolkit includes specific resources for programs that are co-located with domestic violence providers, a practice that has become increasingly more common among TANF agencies.

The Assets for Independence (AFI) Resource Center had developed a collection of resources relating to assisting domestic violence survivors build assets, use Individual Development Accounts, and gain financial independence. Resources are provided to help AFI programs better understand domestic violence, ways to partner with domestic violence programs, and information to share with domestic violence service providers about ways AFI can help survivors. A section also exists, especially for domestic violence service providers, that explains what AFI is and how the program can help. These resources would be helpful for TANF agencies and AFI programs to share with domestic violence service providers in their area to help build collaboration.

The Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) released a research brief from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) entitled "Instability and Early Life Changes among Children in the Child Welfare System." This is one in a series of briefs based on data from NSCAW, a nationally representative, longitudinal survey focusing on children who come to the attention of the child welfare system through investigation by child protective services. The survey is being conducted through a contract to RTI. The brief describes the placement histories and changes in living situations of infants who come to the attention of Child Protective Services.

From the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development and the Kessler Foundation, this research brief outlines innovative practices by employers who operate warehouse distribution centers. Such strategies can be applied to increasing the quality of employment for people with disabilities. Authors highlight a paradigm shift in this area, which focuses on the importance of employer partnerships to meet the needs of both employers and potential employees with disabilities. Companies, such as Walgreens, Lowe's, Toys R Us, and Proctor and Gamble, have been successful in creating local partnerships to recruit people with disabilities.

In this article, Brookings discussed this month's release of the Census Bureau's latest round of Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage data, giving insight into poverty levels for 2011. Rates from the data show an increase in working full-time, year-round jobs in 2011; however, they also show a continual decrease in household income. This article touches upon important findings released, along with suggestions for various factors that will influence poverty levels in the future.

The Center on Children and Families at Brookings has been using a model for the past three years to predict the U.S. poverty rate before the official figure is released by the Census Bureau. In this article, poverty rates for the next twenty years are predicted and discussed, along with the causes and reasoning for the upcoming changes.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on August 24, 2012 that from January 2009 through December 2011, 6.1 million workers were displaced from jobs they had held for at least three years. This is down from the 6.9 million for the survey period covering January 2007 to December 2009. In January 2012, 56 percent of workers displaced from 2009-11 were reemployed, up by seven percentage points from the prior survey in January 2010.

The Brookings Institute published a paper that aimed to provide metro, State, and national policy makers with a clearer understanding of the specific problems facing metropolitan labor markets today. An analysis examining trends in the demand for educated labor, and an explanation on how the gap between education supply and demand is related to unemployment, is addressed. This study concludes with a discussion of the implications of these findings for public policy.

The Brookings Institute published an article on the challenges many families face with poverty. A brief overview of the success of poverty reduction over the past decade is addressed, along with the examination of the major causes of poverty, trends in spending to help poor and low-income Americans, and strategies Congress has adopted to fight poverty.