In November Empower Missouri will host its annual Anti-Poverty Advocates Summit, bringing together advocates from across the state to explore the many ways poverty impacts our neighbors’ lives, and how effective policy change can serve as a long-term solution. We’re excited to welcome Taj Suleyman to give our Tuesday keynote! About Taj Taj Suleyman is a...Lee mas

In November Empower Missouri will host its annual Anti-Poverty Advocates Summit, bringing together advocates from across the state to explore the many ways poverty impacts our neighbors’ lives, and how effective policy change can serve as a long-term solution. We’re excited to welcome Annie Watson to open the Summit with our morning keynote! About Annie...Lee mas

Approximately 3.7 million people in the United States are on community supervision (probation or parole, also referred to as community corrections), which is nearly double the number of people who are incarcerated in prison or jail. Despite the large number of people on supervision, the many problems associated with parole and probation do not receive...Lee mas

For years, we have been fighting a narrative that giving money and support to people trying to make ends meet without requiring them to work discourages them from working. This is simply untrue and results in policies that are based on unfounded biases and increases the risk of people of all ages and abilities failing...Lee mas

Empower Missouri often describes itself as the oldest and largest anti-poverty organization in Missouri. We have over 120 years working on legislative policy change, and a network of thousands of community members across the state working to advance evidence based public policy to end poverty. In those years, we’ve had exciting wins and faced difficult...Lee mas

The 2023 legislative session will end today at 6PM, so there’s only a few hours remaining for the legislature to pass any final bills before the clock runs out.  There will be several opportunities over the next week to debrief the session with Empower Missouri.  On Monday, look for a special email with our end-of-session...Lee mas

Missouri is short of nearly 115,000 affordable and available housing units needed to meet the housing needs of Extremely Low Income Missouri families. Of these 115,000 ELI households, the overwhelming majority, 85%, consist of workers, individuals with disabilities and seniors. These vulnerable households often need to pick between keeping the lights on, keeping their household...Lee mas

With just four weeks to go in Missouri’s legislative session, our Senators and Representatives are hard at work debating legislation that could have long-term consequences for all Missourians. Many of these bills have had the benefit of long committee hearings, with many folks traveling from around the state to speak with their legislators about the...Lee mas

In 2022, we saw the worst inflation in nearly 40 years. Inflation, rising property taxes and rising rents are leaving many of our neighbors, particularly seniors and individuals with disabilities, on the brink of ruin. The economic uncertainties following 2020 have made it more likely for the costs of day-to-day living to exceed the income...Lee mas

Getting a raise or landing a better paying job sounds like great news, especially if your income is low enough that you need additional support to meet your family’s basic needs. But that pay increase comes with a big catch for families who use programs with income thresholds – programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition...Lee mas