Debido al cierre del gobierno, millones de familias verán su asistencia alimentaria federal SNAP detenida. Si tú, o alguien que conoces, necesita asistencia alimentaria, por favor utiliza esta guía para localizar centros de distribución de alimentos y otros recursos comunitarios en el área metropolitana de Houston. Nadie debería tener que enfrentar una mesa vacía en soledad.
Read moreSNAP Benefits Are At Risk—Here’s How Houston Families Can Get Food Help
Over 40 million Americans depend on SNAP each month to put food on the table. But beginning this November, amidst the second-largest government shutdown in U.S. history, millions of families will see their food assistance halted. If you, or anyone you know needs food assistance, please use this guide to locate food distribution centers and other community resources in the Greater Houston Area. No one should have to face an empty table alone.
Read moreFair Housing Act: Local Resources
Contact the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) if you would like to enter a federal complaint. The office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) has complete information on the complaint and investigation process.
Read moreStudent Debt Relief Brief
Image by 3D Animation Production Company from Pixabay
Last week, President Joe Biden announced a new student debt relief plan that will grant millions of federal student loan borrowers up to $20,000 in debt forgiveness. For details and helpful explainers on the Biden-Harris Student Debt Relief Plan, visit the links within.
Read moreA Look at the United States Postal Inspection Service
The United States Postal Inspection Services one of the oldest branches of federal law enforcement. In fact, it traces its history all the way back to 1775, before the Declaration of Independence, when Postmaster General Benjamin Franklin appointed William Goddard to “audit postal accounts” and investigate thefts involving postal service operations. Fighting crime for 245 years has led to some of the biggest busts in US history, from the 1898 lynching of Lake City, South Carolina’s Postmaster Frazier Baker, to Charles Ponzi’s infamous scheme, to the Unabomber, to this summer’s high profile arrest of former White House advisor Steve Bannon.
Roughly 2,442 workers are employed by the Postal Inspection Service, including about 500 uniformed Postal Police Officers. As sworn federal law enforcement officers, the men and women of this elite force work cases large and small, from busting up child pornography rings, to ensuring the Postal Service is not used to move illegal narcotics throughout the country. Back in August, the Postal Inspection Service made headlines when Postal Police arrested Steve Bannon on charges of mail fraud.
Some duties of Postal Police Officers are less glamorous, and more resemble the duties of a beat cop. Though it may not have cracked through the din of our current election/pandemic news cycle, last week USPS top brass pulled Postal Police off of all regular patrol routes. Many within the Postal Service in general, and the Postal Inspection Service in particular, are concerned about the ability of the Postal Service to safely deliver mail-in ballots without being able to guard letter carriers and mail boxes. The Postal Police Officers Association opposes the move.