In the News
Food Resources for Furloughed Federal Employees in Maryland
Beginning October 20, the Capital Area Food Bank will have additional food distributions, along with its regular distribution times and locations. You can pick up shelf-stable items along with fresh produce. In order to receive food at the additional distributions, you will need to show your work ID. The dates, times, and locations in Maryland are as follows: Tuesdays, from 12pm-2pm: No Limits Outreach Ministries, 7721 Barlowe Road, Hyattsville, MD, 20785 Wednesdays, from 10am–11:30am: So What Else, 6116 Executive Boulevard, North Bethesda, MD 20852 Saturdays, from 1:00pm-2:30pm: LindaBen Foundation, 10739 Tucker Street Beltsville, MD 20705 You can get more information ...
Great News for Heather Hill Tenants!
Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced today that his Consumer Protection Division has entered into a Final Order by Consent with Heather Hill Property Company LLC and Heather Hill Operating Company LLC (collectively Heather Hill) for alleged violations of the Consumer Protection Act and the Consumer Debt Collection Act in their operation of a large apartment complex in Temple Hills, Maryland. The Consumer Protection Division’s Final Order requires Heather Hill to provide restitution in the amount of an estimated $11.2 million. This settlement is the largest amount of restitution obtained by the Consumer Protection Division in a landlord/tenant case. “This ...
Maryland hospitals won’t have to repay millions they overcharged poor patients
The state tried to get hospitals to refund poor patients they overcharged. Then it gave up. Read the Baltimore Banner article here, where our executive director Marceline White, is quoted.
Maryland Student Loan Debt Relief Tax Credit
More than a quarter million student loan borrowers have paused their loan repayment plans while economic hardship forebearances have more than doubled. Interest rates have resumed, as have debt collections. If you're struggling with loan repayments, there is help available. Maryland has a Student Loan Debt Relief Tax Credit which provides some relief for Maryland student borrowers. To be eligible for the credit, a borrower must: Be a Maryland taxpayer. Have incurred at least $20,000 in undergraduate and/or graduate student loan debt. Owe at least $5,000 in outstanding student loan debt at the time of applying for the tax credit. ...
Al-Jazeera Op-Ed
Our Executive Director, Marceline White, published an op-ed in Al-Jazeera on the CFPB, and what cuts to that agency mean to American consumers. Read the op-ed here.
Maryland Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Tenants Using Housing Vouchers
Earlier this year, the Maryland Attorney General asked the Maryland Supreme Court to protect housing voucher recipients from income-based discrimination, via an amicus brief filed in March. In July of this year, the Maryland Supreme Court issued a judgement in favor of the tenant. The case began when a tenant named Katrina Hare tried to obtain housing in a Baltimore County apartment complex owned by David S. Brown Enterprises. The company implemented an income requirement, and did not use the accepted income calculations that take into account the client's voucher amount. As a result, Ms. Hare was denied housing because ...
Maryland Commission on Civil Rights Publishes Source of Income Guidance
This information is important for both landlords and tenants. The Maryland Commission on Civil Rights has published Source of Income Guidance, which outlines the rules around what landlords can and cannot do, with regard to tenants who use Housing Choice Vouchers and other sources of non-traditional income. From MCCR: The purpose of this guidance1 is to provide information on how the State of Maryland Commission on Civil Rights (“Commission”) analyzes source of income discrimination in housing as a result of the enactment of the Housing Opportunities Made Equal (“HOME”) Act of 2020. The guidance aims to inform tenants, housing providers, ...
Maryland Management Emergency Rental Assistance Conciliation Agreement
According to the Maryland Office of the Attorney General, Maryland Management, Inc. refused to participate in or cooperate with emergency rental assistance programs. If you were denied housing or evicted because of this practice, you may be eligible to receive a money settlement from a Restitution Fund negotiated by the Maryland Attorney General to resolve allegations of Source of Income Discrimination by Maryland Management Company, Inc. This agreement can be downloaded here. The amount of compensation you are eligible for will depend on your experience with Maryland Management Company, Inc., and other applications to the Restitution Fund. To receive any ...
Do You Need Medical Debt Assistance?
Far too few patients are aware they may qualify for financial assistance that would reduce or wipe-out their medical debt. Economic Action Maryland Fund is thrilled to partner with Dollar For to help patients in Maryland apply for hospital financial assistance.Dollar For has been working nationwide to crush medical debt by helping patients apply for financial assistance and advocating with hospitals to eliminate or reduce patients’ medical debt.If you or someone you know has medical debt from a hospital stay, click on this link which will take you to our page. On the page you can:See if you may qualify ...
Please Attend! Economic Justice in Action: Power and Policy in the Age of Deregulation
The fight for economic justice has never been more critical. Congress is ramming through the federal budget bill, which threatens to reshape our economy in drastic ways. The bill would further enrich billionaires by cutting services and assistance for the families that need them most, from Medicaid to SNAP to student loan relief. It also makes policy changes that erode consumer protections, guts efforts to expand small business-lending, and funds anti-immigration practices and programs. In Maryland, we’re working to understand how this assault on working people will impact our families and communities, particularly Black and Brown neighborhoods still living with ...