The USDA, Food and Nutrition Service, has created two interactive maps that allow users to find specific information about Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) participation rates. Map users can click on each State to learn about the State's participation rate and how given percentage increases in participation rates could affect the State's economy as well as total SNAP and SFSP participant numbers. The maps' homepage also links to the source of each map's data.

Broadband serves as a critical foundation for leveraging economic growth, improving education and health care, addressing energy and environmental challenges, promoting civic engagement, and expanding public safety responsiveness. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), recognizing the importance of broadband, has recently developed the National Broadband Plan to expand broadband services across America. The National Broadband Plan provides a strategy for improving connectedness across the nation that will promote economic development; enhance education, health, and public safety services; and improve responsiveness to energy, environmental, and civic engagement challenges. The Plan seeks to improve the accessibility of high speed services to those with the most need. The Plan sets a strategy that will enable more Americans to be connected at affordable prices and at high speeds. In developing this plan, the FCC recognizes that broadband can be the key to opening economic opportunities, improving health and education opportunities, expanding public safety responsiveness, addressing energy and environmental challenges, and promoting civic engagement for those with the most critical need. As such, the Plan will evolve with technological innovation, reflect new connectivity opportunities, and adjust to developing markets.

In 2010, it is estimated that there were 45.9 million adults in the United States with mental illness. Of these 45.9 million adults, 32.9 percent received mental health services. NSDUH presents the results of interviews conducted with household residents, non-institutionalized individuals, and civilians living on military bases ages 12 and older from January to December 2010. These interviews measured the frequency of mental illnesses, treatments for depression, and mental health service utilization.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment & Training (SNAP E&T) was designed to help move individuals towards exiting SNAP and reaching economic self-sufficiency through gainful employment. Authored by the National Skills Coalition with funding from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, this user’s guide was designed to provide workforce development stakeholders with information on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment & Training (SNAP E&T, formerly Food Stamp Employment & Training or FSET). Authors provide an overview as well as information for designing and implementing a SNAP E&T program.

This resource guide was authored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children’s Bureau, Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, its Child Welfare Information Gateway, the FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention, and the Center for the Study of Social Policy—Strengthening Families. The guide was designed to help community-based service providers better work with parents and children to prevent child abuse and neglect, and authors provide information on protective factors, how to engage the community, why child abuse and neglect occurs, and tips on strength-based approaches for working with parents and caregivers.

The U.S. Department Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced awards of $201 million to 731 homeless programs across the United States, which provides emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent support for individuals and families. HUD also awarded $1.47 billion to renew funding to 7,100 existing local homeless programs. Between 2010 and 2011, homelessness declined 2.1 percent and 12 percent among Veterans.

<p>Authorized by the Affordable Care Act, the Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) program from the Administration for Children and Families provides education and training to TANF recipients and other low-income individuals for occupations in the health care field. The <a href="http://www.acf.hhs.gov/ofa/programs/hpog/">HPOG Web site</a> serves as a repository of important grant-related information and a forum for grantee interaction. Among other features, the Web site enables you to: locate contact information for all HPOG grantees in the <a href="http://www.acf.hhs.gov/ofa/hpog/findhpogprograms">Grantee Directory</a>; learn about what other HPOG programs are doing; and find helpful technical assistance toolkits, conference presentations, administrative forms, and other relevant documents in the <a href="http://www.acf.hhs.gov/ofa/resource-library/search?area%5b2400%5d=2400">Resources Section</a>.</p>

The Urban Institute authored this issue brief on the multisite Housing Opportunity and Services Together (HOST) demonstration. The demonstration tests strategies using housing as a way to get vulnerable families services that they need to reach self-sufficiency, such as mental health services, access to literacy and education, and a connection to the labor force. Authors provide an overview of the challenges and successes of the program’s planning stages to help provide peers with information to create similar interventions.

This First Focus report from the Brookings Institution offers a summary of the economic recession’s impact on children in the United States. During an average month in 2011, an estimated 6.5 children had an unemployed parent, with more than 1 million living in California, which has an unemployment rate of 12 percent. Many children are receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits as a result of the recession, as children make up half of all SNAP beneficiaries. SNAP caseloads have increased by 70 percent over the last four years. Finally, child poverty has increased from 18 percent in 2007 to 22 percent in 2010.

The Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, in partnership with the Urban Institute, released this research brief, which examines policies that are client-friendly and the implications that this has for the Child Care Development Fund (CCDF). Authors provide research on the CCDF, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Medicaid/State Child Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP). The recommendations for CCDF include simplifying the application and renewal processes and recognizing that administrative changes may affect subgroups in different ways.