The Contract for College would unify the existing three strands of federal financial aid — grants, loans and work-study — into a coherent, guaranteed financial aid package for students.
Initiative Aims to Strengthen Social Insurance, Promote Broadly Shared Prosperity, Set the Record Straight on Federal Spending
New York — Demos and The Century Foundation today launched an initiative to strengthen social insurance programs and develop a roadmap for a fair and responsible federal budget. The project gets underway as the White House prepares for its February 23 "Fiscal Responsibility Summit."
New York, NY — The 2008 presidential campaign ended with a sharp moral debate about "spreading the wealth" in the United States. With national concern about a barrage of bad economic news--from the financial meltdown on Wall Street to the near-bankruptcy of the American auto-industry — which, coupled with bailouts and controversial tax plans proposed by the new Administration, have moved the issue of wealth distribution to the forefront of public debate.
Proposal to Expand Funding for Low-Income Students; Increased Access to Federal Loan Program
New York, NY — Demos, a national, non-partisan, public policy and advocacy organization, in partnership with twelve national organizations representing students, colleges, consumers, and college administrators, sent a letter to Congress on Wednesday calling for increased investment in college affordability and reducing financial barriers for entry into post-secondary education.
Lawful Use of Same-Day Registration No Basis for Voter Witch-Hunt
XENIA, OH — Greene County Prosecuting Attorney Stephan Haller and Sheriff Gene Fischer abruptly announced they were dropping an investigation into same-day registrants last week, after Demos and other voting rights advocates warned that their actions appeared to violate federal voting rights protections.
Columbus, OH — Demos and other voting rights advocates filed a brief in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio today urging the court to protect Ohio voters against unlawful purges on the eve of the presidential election. The Ohio GOP has asked the court to require mass purges of voters who have registered since January 1, 2008, if last-minute "matching" process shows any discrepancy between voter registration and motor vehicle records.
New Report by Demos Underscores Survey Findings, Showing Sharp Rise in College-Related Costs and Debt; Access for Minorities
WASHINGTON, DC — The rising cost of college is a critical, yet largely overlooked concern of voters this election year, according to a new National Education Association (NEA)/ Project New West survey. It finds that a majority of voters believe a college education is necessary to make ends meet in today's global economy but feel that struggling middle class families don't get the help they need to pay for it.
Groups Call for Senate to Quickly Pass "Veterans Voting Support Act"
Washington, DC — Hundreds of thousands of veterans would have widespread and direct access to voter registration services through Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) offices under a landmark bill that was passed by the House of Representatives yesterday, the Veterans Voting Support Act (H.R. 6625), introduced by Rep. Robert Brady. A companion bill sponsored by Senators Diane Feinstein and John Kerry (S. 3308) may be acted on by the Senate in coming days.
America needs an election process that is efficient, trustworthy, and welcoming. We need a renewed sense of citizenship and service, and a government that people can believe in.
The Veterans Voting Support Act required that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) agree to state designations of its facilities as voter registration agencies under Section 7 of the NVRA.
Advocates Call for Passage of Feinstein and Kerry's "Veterans Voting Support Act"
New York — In response to the Department of Veterans Affairs' decision to modify its policy barring voter registration activity in VA facilities, today the American Association of People with Disabilities, the Brennan Center for Justice, Common Cause, Demos and the League of Women Voters submitted a letter to U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein calling the VA's directive an important but still inadequate step towards protecting the voting rights of veterans.
Election Day Registration (EDR), which allows eligible voters to register and cast a ballot on Election Day, is a reform that reduces the unnecessary disfranchisement of eligible voters that may be caused by arbitrary registration deadlines.