NLIHC joined a sign-on letter on March 18 urging Congress to incorporate the “Allowing Steady Savings by Eliminating Tests (ASSET) Act” (S.3276/H.R.5848) in the next coronavirus supplemental spending package. The letter was sent Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
The ASSET Act was introduced on February 11 by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH), along with Representatives TJ Cox (D-CA), Kim Schrier (D-WA), and Jimmy Gomez (D-CA) (see Memo, 2/18). The bill proposes to eliminate asset limits for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), as well as raising asset limits on Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Without eliminating or raising asset limits, any direct cash payments to households made through an emergency supplemental bill may unintentionally disqualify households from receiving support or remove already enrolled households from the programs. Including the provisions in the ASSET Act would help protect low-income households from disenrollment and allow them to continue receiving these vital benefits.
The letter is at: https://bit.ly/3b8pBzJ
More information about the ASSET Act is at: https://bit.ly/2U4glH2