The City of Philadelphia has made a significant change to the amount of rental assistance funding that is available for Phase 2 of the COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program. Now, RENT CAN BE PAID UP TO $1500.00!

"Our goal throughout the pandemic has been – and continues to be – to keep people in their homes." said Mayor Jim Kenney. "Whether it’s through our rental assistance program, COVID emergency housing sites, or our...

Prison Policy Initiative: Wanda Bertram - September 2, 2020

The very same obstacles that make it hard for people released from prison to succeed — homelessness, a lack of transportation, barriers to healthcare, and more — also make it harder to stay safe from the coronavirus. At this moment, where it is well established that depopulating prisons and jails is critical for health and safety on both sides of the walls, it is criti...

Generocity: Michael Butler & Alyssa Biederman - September 11, 2020

As the job-killing COVID-19 pandemic rages, accessing unemployment benefits in recent months has been a lifeline for hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians — as well as a headache.

While it had initially had its issues — including overloaded helplines — the state’s Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) application gave gig workers and f...

The Philadelphia Inquirer: Madusa Carter - September 9, 2020

As an organizer, I often work with people who are incarcerated. On a regular day, they face huge challenges. But in recent weeks, I’ve heard especially troubling stories about lack of PPE, soap, and health care, especially for pregnant, immunocompromised, and otherwise vulnerable people — all in the middle of a pandemic. Recently, one of my colleagues got a call from...

Billy Penn: Layla A Jones - September 6, 2020

A weekly $300 boost for some Pennsylvanians collecting unemployment because of COVID-related issues will begin as soon as Sept. 14, according to the Pa. Department of Labor and Industry.

The extra funds are a stop-gap replacement for the expired $600 CARES Act assistance benefits. Called Lost Wages Assistance (LWA), the new $44 billion program is funded by FEMA, with $1.5 billion goi...

CNN: Eric Levenson - September 2, 2020

Impact Report: COVID-19 and Jails - National Commission on COVID-19 and Criminal Justice

A State-by-State Look at Coronavirus in Prisons - The Marshall Project

The Covid-19 infection and mortality rates are significantly higher in prisons than in the general population, though the severity differs widely among states, a new study found.

In addition, fewer people are being held in jails since...

First, while SCIs remain closed to in-person visitors, some county jails have begun to allow no-contact visits again. They’ve heard from at least six jails that are doing this with certain restrictions to minimize the risk of coronavirus infection. They include Cumberland County Prison and Armstrong County Jail, which have remained free of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, and the jail in Bradford County, where the...

This Monday, Urban Creators launched their new website, as well as a series of resource lists for individuals, families, educators, and activists. Urban Creators is a platform for radical and collaborative imagination. Since 2010 they have used food, art, and education as tools to nurture resilience and self-determination in our neighborhood. Now, they are supporting the emergence of a new generation of Urban Creators by coope...

2020 has brought some unique challenges - in the year of COVID - one of which has been the impact it has had on our ability to provide in-person Reentry Job Fairs at the State Correctional Institutions (SCIs) across the state.  

In order to continue to meet the needs of returning citizens, DoC is seeking other innovative ways to provide reentry and employment information to those that are preparing for return to the commun...

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Is my loved one eligible to be released under the Governor's new rep...

COVID-19 has hit communities of color and immigrants in Philadelphia in complex and fatal ways. Black and Brown women who are the essential workers in healthcare, childcare, education, retail and domestic work, remain invisible while bearing the brunt of this pandemic.

The Mayor’s Commission on African and Caribbean Affairs, the Philadelphia Commission for Women, the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, the Mayor’s Office of En...

Round 2 of the COVID-19 PA Relief Statewide Small Business Assistance program is now open. This program will provide grants ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 to businesses economically impacted by COVID-19.  To apply, click here.

The application window is open for 15 business days, from 9am on August 10th to 11:59pm on August 28th.

Please note, there has been a change in the criminal history eligibility. More business ow...