The U.S. Senate will soon decide whether to confirm Debo Adegbile to serve as assistant attoney general in charge of the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division. The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) is one 75 organizations that signed a letter to Senate leadership urging confirmation of Adegbile. NASW is  also active in the Debo Nomination Coalition. There are several important ... Read More »

Social Security this year is making service changes that could affect social workers and their clients. Beginning August 2014 Social Security will no longer issue Social Security number printouts at its field officials. Individuals who need proof of their Social Security number and cannot find their card must apply for a replacement card. Starting in October 2014, Social Security field ... Read More »

On January 16, 2014, the House of Representatives introduced the Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2014 (H.R. 3899). This is a bipartisan bill that was co-sponsored in the House by Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI) and John Conyers (D-MI). The Senate version of the bill, S. 1945, was also introduced on January 16, 2014 by Patrick Leahy (D-VT). The introduction of the ... Read More »

The National Association of Social Workers and its Massachusetts Chapter are closely watching the U.S. Supreme Court case McCullen v. Coakley and hope the court will rule in favor of keeping safety buffer zones around reproductive health care facilities in Massachusetts. The court on Jan. 15 will hear oral arguments on whether the law is constitutional. A ruling is expected ... Read More »

On December 19, 2013, President Obama announced his list presidential pardons of persons in the criminal justice system. In addition to the 13 pardons issued, President Obama commuted the prison terms of eight people convicted on federal crack cocaine charges. Most significantly, the president’s stated reason for his decision is that these individuals were punished under laws that permitted unfair ... Read More »

The National Association of Social Workers is relieved that Republicans, Democrats and the White House have reached an agreement to reopen the government after a 16-day shutdown. However, we are concerned millions of Americans, including federal contract workers who will not get back pay, will struggle financially in the aftermath of the shutdown. And the shutdown could stymie economic recovery. ... Read More »