Joint Center Updates
July 20 COVID-19 Policy & Black Communities Roundup
Senate Democrats Introduce a $350 Billion Stimulus Bill With the expanded $600 per week federal unemployment benefit set to expire at the end of this month and the White House open to compromise on the issue, Democrats and Republicans return to Washington this week and continue to debate over whether and how to extend jobless…
Joint Center Mourns the Loss of Congressman John R. Lewis
The Joint Center released the following statement from Spencer Overton, the President of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies on the passing of Congressman John R. Lewis: “I am so sorry to hear about the loss of Congressman John Lewis, and my thoughts and prayers go out to his family, as well as…
July 13 COVID-19 Policy & Black Communities Roundup
Still No Decisions on Coronavirus Relief Extensions Division remains on the size of the next stimulus package, with Democrats calling for at least double the $1 trillion limit proposed by the Trump Administration. Democrats—led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)—are resisting calls from the GOP to protect businesses from lawsuits that may be filed by…
July 6 COVID-19 Policy & Black Communities Roundup
Small Business Loan Program Extended to August On the Fourth of July, President Trump signed legislation to extend the deadline for businesses to apply for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to August 8. Earlier last week the House passed the legislation, and just hours before the program was scheduled to expire (with $130 billion still…
Now Hiring: Special Assistant to the President and Project Coordinator
The Joint Center is seeking a Special Assistant to the President and Project Coordinator The Joint Center’s Special Assistant to the President and Project Coordinator will manage the president’s daily business by scheduling internal and external meetings, and pro-actively ensuring that meetings and appointments stay on time regarding the president’s schedule; compile the president’s daily…
Joint Center News: June 2020
This is our regular monthly newsletter, which reviews all of the Joint Center’s work over the past month. Every Monday, we also publish a weekly roundup of the latest news and analysis on COVID-19 policy and Black communities. Details are below on all of the Joint Center’s work for the past month—including but not limited to COVID-19.…
June 29 COVID-19 Policy & Black Communities Roundup
Upcoming Economic Data May Affect Next Coronavirus Stimulus On Thursday, July 2 the Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the June employment situation report, which will illuminate the status of the labor market (including data on unemployment among Black communities). On the same day, the Department of Labor will release last week’s initial unemployment claims…
The Joint Center Releases Joint Statement with Several Civil Rights Organizations on Facebook’s Latest Policy Announcement on Hate Speech and Voter Disinformation
On June 29, the Joint Center released a joint statement with The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and several other civil rights groups on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s latest policy announcement on hate speech and voter disinformation: “While we welcome any progress in Facebook’s policies, today’s announcement continues the company’s practice of taking incremental steps…
Now Hiring: Director of Technology Policy
The Joint Center is seeking a Director of Technology Policy. Data and machine learning hold tremendous potential to positively impact Black communities. Simultaneously, these new tools pose significant threats. Automated decisions may magnify discrimination in hiring practices, lending and other financial services, housing, education, insurance, law enforcement and surveillance (e.g., predictive policing, facial recognition, bail…
June 16 COVID-19 Policy & Black Communities Roundup
Democrats and Republicans Work on Policing Reform After introducing a police reform bill at the beginning of last week, House Democrats held hearings on police reform, and expect to secure the 216 co-sponsors needed for passage of their reform package on the House floor (voting on the legislation is scheduled for June 25). Senate…