When White People Catch A Cold… Inequity and National Crisis
Reflections from CLS Deputy Director of Operations and Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer Brenda Marrero on racial injustice.
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The Dangerous Weight of Water Debt
For years, Philadelphia operated an inefficient assistance program for low-income water customers, Philadelphia’s most economically vulnerable households. The program helped…
Utility affordability is a human rights and racial justice issue
People of color are disproportionately burdened by unaffordable utility service. Nationally, Black and Latinx households spend a greater percentage of…
Trauma Histories and the Impact on Parents Involved with DHS
We often talk about the various kinds of traumas experienced by children in the child welfare system –the traumas that…
Spring is Coming: Here’s How to Keep Your Utilities On
Each year, residential Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) and PECO customers are protected from utility shut offs by the winter moratorium.…
New SNAP time limit starting April 2020 for Philadelphians aged 18-50 who are not working and not exempt
Good news: a court has put a halt to the ABAWDs rule change. The rule will not be going into…
Problems Using The IRS Web Portal to Get COVID-19 Payments? We Want to Hear from You!
Are you a non-tax filer who receives federal benefits, including SSI, SSDI, RRB or VA benefits? Have you tried to use…
SCOTUS Must End Employment Discrimination Against the LGBTQ+ Community
Update, June 15, 2020: Great news from the U.S. Supreme Court! The Supreme Court just ruled that that a federal…
Saving Your Home and Water Service Through TAP
A recent Pew Charitable Trusts article highlighted a growing problem across the country – overdue water bills causing the loss of a…
Roxanne Jones Fellowship Brings Opportunity, Connections
This summer, Community Legal Services (CLS) was thrilled to establish the Senator Roxanne Jones Fellowship to enable future leaders in…
Right to Counsel Passes Philadelphia City Council!
Right to Counsel passed unanimously in Philadelphia City Council on November 14! This bill guarantees low income tenants an attorney…
Report: Philadelphia Should Expand Its Kinship Care Program
We all know instinctively, and it is borne out in the research, that children do better with their families. Removal…
Report: Pennsylvania Clean Slate: Delivering on Its Promises
Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate law, Act 56 of 2018, was passed to bring criminal record sealing to scale by the use…
Report: Legal Remedies and Limitations on the Employment of People with Criminal Records in Pennsylvania
Download the full report Like most Americans, ex-offenders need to be employed to support themselves and their families. Moreover,…
Reflections on Racial Injustice from CLS’s Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer
Reflections from CLS Deputy Director of Operations and Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer Brenda Marrero on racial injustice.
PGW Wants to Raise Your Gas Bill During a Pandemic. Here’s What You Can Do.
PGW wants to increase customer rates by $70 million per year. They say the average household’s gas bill would go…
