Latest news with #SunnyDayFund
Forbes
17-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Preparing For Financial Challenges When We Don't Know What's Next
We can learn a lot from emergency management professionals who rely on a framework to ensure people ... More are prepared for every stage of a disaster. Whether you are the CEO of a Fortune 500 company or of your household finances, the constant uncertainty of these times can be paralyzing. From on-again off-again tariffs, to government firings and rehirings, to talk of both inflation and a potential recession, how can Americans move forward with confidence? It turns out that we don't need to be able to predict the future to be prepared for it. Think about the weather: Between 2018 and 2023, three out of four people in the U.S. experienced an extreme weather event like a hurricane, a fire, or a flood. While the exact timing and force of these events may be impossible to forecast, the majority of us will experience them at some point, so we should prepare. The same is true for our finances. While different economic scenarios bring their own unique challenges, the potential financial impacts are more predictable: paycheck disruptions, housing insecurity, unforeseen expenses. Any of these can be financially devastating. And so we also must be ready. We can learn a lot from emergency management professionals who rely on a framework to ensure people are prepared for every stage of a disaster. It looks like this: It turns out, this framework makes sense in all kinds of situations. In the face of the extreme uncertainty like we're facing now, one of the best things to do to regain some control is to focus on the front end of mitigating the risks and preparing for the worst. Take Sherman, a middle school teacher who has been building a small emergency fund with help from SaverLife, a nonprofit that leverages technology to help people save and improve their financial health. When a severe accident totaled his car, Sherman had the savings he needed to buy a replacement. He wasn't happy about having to drain all of his savings, but doing so enabled him to continue to get to work and to make his student loan payments on time. Now he's working a second job at UPS so he can rebuild his savings. Yet, preparing for a crisis is hard when simply paying for daily essentials can break the bank. Consider this: between 1990 and 2019, the median family's income grew 140%, but the cost of prescription drugs grew about 175%, childcare more than 200%, and higher education almost 400%. Housing costs are also a major strain: half of renters spend more than a third of their income on rent and utilities. With statistics like these, it's not surprising that more than half of Americans spend more than they earn and 44% don't have enough saved to cover three months of living expenses. Mitigation is particularly important for households with less of a financial cushion, and fintech firms are making it easier for people to reduce risk and build resilience. For instance, employers are increasingly turning to companies like Sunny Day Fund to help their workers build emergency savings. And a growing number of financial apps can help users find and cancel unwanted subscriptions in order to reduce expenses. Some of the most exciting innovations are happening thanks to GenAI. One of the newest, Hiro, promises to be your AI personal CFO. One of the questions it can help answer: Do I have a large enough emergency fund given these turbulent markets and is it earning the best rate? Private-sector solutions are more critical than ever and it's time to get creative. What role can you play in building financial resilience for your customers, employees, and their communities? Ultimately, it doesn't matter if the next crisis is a hurricane or a recession. What matters is that we start preparing now so when the next storm hits – literal or metaphorical – we'll be ready to weather it together.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New Maryland budget cuts: Here are the agencies, programs impacted
BALTIMORE — In nearly 200 amendments to Gov. Wes Moore's budget legislation, state lawmakers have proposed new cuts that would trim community college scholarships, eliminate vacant positions in the state workforce and slash planned increases in one of the governor's signature programs aimed at fighting child poverty. The cuts — totaling more than $2 billion in planned spending reductions — aim to resolve most of the state's roughly $3.3 billion budget deficit. Moore and the leaders of the Democratic-controlled Maryland General Assembly agreed on the framework for the revised plan last week, and it was given preliminary approval Tuesday after several hours of debate in the House. The governor's original proposal in January included hundreds of millions of dollars in controversial cuts to the Developmental Disabilities Administration as well as to the Blueprint for Maryland's Future, the education reform plan that is a major driver of the state's long-term budget deficit. After protests from advocates for both programs, coming from outside the State House and many lawmakers within it, those cuts were restored. Dozens of other cuts were made in their place, including for positions that officials originally aimed to add to the state's payroll, and for community-focused funds like one that helps boost economic development in West Baltimore, according to state budget documents. Though the list of cuts could still be amended before the legislative session ends April 7, here is where some of the new, and previously proposed, cuts stood Tuesday: •$419.5 million: Not making a scheduled addition to the 'rainy day fund,' which will remain above recommended levels at $2.1 billion. •$128.2 million: Planning for a higher rate of employee vacancies, which reduces the amount of budgeted positions across the executive, legislative and judicial branches. According to the House plan, 212 state positions were abolished. •$50 million: Shifting, from the general fund to bonds, the state's annual share of Baltimore's plan to rehabilitate thousands of vacant properties. •$46 million: Eliminating new funding for the ENOUGH Act, one of Moore's signature programs to fight child poverty. •$14.6 million: Maryland Judiciary employee merit raises and increments eliminated. •$10 million: Reduction to the Economic Development Opportunities Program Account, also referred to as the Sunny Day Fund. •$9.1 million: Reduces funding for Medicaid provider reimbursements to lower rates for managed care organizations in calendar year 2025 to the bottom of the actuarially sound level. •$8 million: Lowering the cap on film production activity tax credits. •$5 million: Eliminating new funding for the West North Avenue Development Authority's grants program, an economic development project in West Baltimore. •$3.2 million: Reduction to the Tourism Development Board. •$3 million: Reducing Maryland Community College Promise Scholarships, for which eligible community college students receive up to $5,000. •$2 million: Removes a discretionary increase to local health grants.$2 million: Reduces the amount of funding for Cyber Workforce Grants. •$1.7 million: Funding set aside for 21 new positions in the Department of Service and Civic Innovation will be used to backfill a reduced amount for the Young Adult Service Year Option Pathway grants. •$1.5 million: Reduces the grant funding for the Maryland Tech Council's BioHub Maryland Initiative, restoring it to last year's funding level. •$1.1 million: Reduces Department of Human Services administrative funds for the SUN Bucks program, which helps families provide free or reduced-price meals for children. -----------
CBS News
05-02-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore to deliver his State of the State address on Wednesday
BALTIMORE -- Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is set to deliver his third State of the State address Wednesday afternoon from the House Chamber of the Maryland State House. The governor is expected to discuss his plans, priorities and budget for Maryland. Key Bridge design unveiled On Tuesday, Gov. Moore and the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) unveiled the design for the newly constructed Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed on March 26, 2024. The cargo ship Dali lost power before crashing into the bridge, causing it to collapse and sending seven workers into the Patapsco River, killing six of them. Moore says the newly proposed bridge design will honor the architectural tradition of the original Key Bridge. "Our new bridge will also be constructed in accordance with the most advanced industry standards and the very best in infrastructure design," Moore said. "We are going to use the best materials available and employ many Marylanders to build it." Pre-construction began in January 2025, and the rebuild is expected to be completed by fall 2028. Kiewit Infrastructure estimated that the project will cost about $2 billion. Officials say the cable stay design of the new bridge will allow the federal shipping channel to expand from 700 ft. to 1,000 ft. wide. The base of the bridge will also be raised to 230 ft., which is a 45-foot increase to accommodate ship traffic. The roadway will still be two lanes wide going in each direction. "We're basically taking the best of the best that we can find, but we're also very focused on the time to redo this bridge," MDOT Sec. Paul Wiedefeld said. Overcoming $2.7 billion deficit Moore recently broke down his FY2026 budget that would trim taxes to 66% of Marylanders. The governor says the plan, part of a broader budget strategy that includes $2 billion in spending cuts, aims to relieve middle-class families while asking more from those earning over $500,000 annually. Individuals making more than $1 million would see the largest tax increases. Maryland is figuring out ways to alleviate the state's $2.7 billion deficit, its largest in 20 years. Moore compared the state's massive shortfall to worse than the Great Depression. "I inherited a structural deficit when I became the governor because the state was both spending at a clip of what that was not sustainable, and we were growing at a clip that was embarrassing," Moore said. The state is legally required to pass a balanced budget, and the legislature will likely vote on the 83rd day of the session, on April 1, 2025. Proposed investments also include the following: $750 million for economic and workforce development, including 128.5 million of targeted business development investments. $27.5 million to invest in the "Capital of Quantum" initiative in partnership with IonQ in College Park and the University of Maryland. According to Moore, investing in the quantum computer industry. $25 million for the state's "Sunny Day Fund" to attract businesses to the state. $15 million to support Tradepoint Atlantic's new terminal development in Sparrow's Point. $6 million for the Maryland Manufacturing 4.0 program Other investments in cyber, bio, and apprenticeship programs. Maintain $122 million in local aid for police protection. Increase funding for the Department of Juvenile Services. Investments in public education and childcare. Deadly overdose decline Moore said Maryland had a sharp decline in deadly overdoses in 2024. Data from Maryland's Overdose Data Dashboard shows 1,553 reported fatal overdoses in the state last year, which is a 38% decrease from the 2,511 fatal overdoses in 2023. "The decrease in fatal overdoses that we're seeing in Maryland is historic, and it's proof that our investments in behavioral health and substance use care and the incredible efforts of people all around our state are paying off," Moore said. "However, we still have work to do. We are still losing far too many of our loved ones and neighbors to preventable overdoses, and we will not let up in our efforts to meet people where they are and make connections to care." According to the data dashboard, Black individuals accounted for 44% of overdose deaths in Maryland since 2022, and Black men older than 55 years of age saw the highest rate of increase in overdose deaths. Overdose deaths among Hispanic residents under age 25 have surpassed those of both white and Black residents in the same age group since 2023, according to the report.
