 |
|
|
|||||
With federal SNAP food assistance set to run dry this weekend amid the protracted U.S. government shutdown, Louisiana, New Mexico and Vermont became the latest states Wednesday to announce help for low-income households that rely on the funds to eat.They join states from New York to Nevada in scrambling to find ways to get food to people who are increasingly anxious and will otherwise go hungry without their normal monthly payments from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Several states take action Wednesday In Louisiana, where nearly one in five residents receive SNAP benefits, lawmakers authorized $150 million in state funding Wednesday to help avoid Saturday’s expected interruption. Republican Gov. Jeff Landry backed a bipartisan measure to allow most of the state’s nearly 800,000 SNAP recipients to receive their full monthly benefit amount.“Our priorities are specific, we’re going to protect the most vulnerable population in Louisiana which is our kids, disabled and elderly,” Landry said.But officials said that while program details are still incomplete, the effort will likely exclude “able bodied” adults who aren’t caring for children or don’t share a household with elderly or disabled members about 53,000 recipients.Elsewhere, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Wednesday that her state will provide $30 million in emergency food assistance to residents through EBT cards, backfilling SNAP benefits temporarily. The Democrat leads a state where 21% of the population relies on SNAP the highest rate in the nation. Officials said the benefit would cover about 30% of what residents usually see at the start of the month.New Mexico held a two-day special legislative session at the outset of the shutdown to shore up food banks and pantries with $8 million in new funding, along with $17.5 million in SNAP-related costs to offset cuts under President Donald Trump’s spending and tax cut bill.The emergency funding is expected to last about 10 days, while Democratic state House Speaker Javier Martínez said the Legislature is positioned to approve more if necessary because “children going without basic food staples is an emergency.”Lujan Grisham said state officials are aware that 10 days isn’t enough but they are prepared to deal with the issue for as long as they can.“We’re not going to let food insecurity creep into this state,” she said.In Vermont, Republican Gov. Phil Scott and Democratic legislative leaders approved using $6.3 million in state funds to cover 15 days of SNAP benefits and provide $250,000 to food banks. The Legislature had previously put $50 million aside for such emergencies. Different strokes for different states So far, state responses have been mixed. Some, like Rhode Island, say they will funnel reserve federal welfare funds directly onto the debit cards issued to people who buy groceries with SNAP. States including Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, West Virginia plan to boost funds to food pantries to help cover for low-income families needing food. Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Republican Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo are both seeking to direct $30 million in state funds to cover food assistance.Other states such as Alabama, Texas, Kansas and Florida have not acted.In Nebraska, the state Department of Health and Human Services issued a statement Tuesday announcing it would pause SNAP benefits the next day. It said it is “actively coordinating with food banks, nonprofit partners, and community organizations,” and listed area food banks for those seeking help.Leaving people to fend for themselves will mean the most vulnerable like children and the elderly will go hungry, said Tashara Leak, a registered dietitian and nutritional researcher and professor at Cornell University. She also serves on New York State Council on Hunger and Food Policy that routinely meets with New York’s governor.“The panic is already starting,” Leak said, adding families with limited resources are “already rationing food in preparation to not receive benefits on Nov. 1.” States can’t do what the federal government can Despite the best efforts of states, local governments and food charities, it won’t be enough to cover what the federal government does under SNAP. Even states with fat budget surpluses couldn’t cover the SNAP tab much beyond November. That tab nationwide totaled about $100 billion in 2024.“There’s no way for the states to be able to fill in the gap for the month of November, especially with such short notice,” Leak said.Democrats have called on the Trump administration to release contingency funding to ensure uninterrupted SNAP payments, but it has declined to do so.Recently, a group of Democratic state officials filed suit, asking a judge to require the Trump administration to keep funding SNAP benefits. They say that the government is required to use one contingency fund, which has around $5 billion, for that purpose and that another larger reserve fund of about $23 billion is also available. A hearing is set for Thursday in federal court in Boston.Delays in benefits are nearly certain for most beneficiaries whose debit cards are replenished early in the month even in states that are planning to pay for benefits or if a judge orders the federal government to load the cards immediately.The legal filing asserted that in California, for instance, there will be a one-day delay in benefits available for every day after Oct. 23 that the process of putting money on cards hasn’t begun. That means that if a judge orders the program to continue on Thursday, the first cards would likely not be ready until around Nov. 10.Christopher Bosso, a Northeastern University professor of public policy and political science who has published a book about SNAP, said even a delay would be deeply felt. Beneficiaries often stock up on groceries at the start of the month, and stores often hold sales then that encourage shoppers to do so.“We’re about to find out how much this program matters, in ways that people hadn’t realized,” Bosso said. AP writers Sara Cline in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Morgan Lee in Santa Fe, New Mexico; Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this report. Margery A. Beck and Geoff Mulvihill, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
Recently, Figma CEO Dylan Field assembled employees from throughout the company for a demo of a new-ish tool for generating, refining, and editing synthetic images and videos. Rather than being built around one-off prompts, it allowed users to create visual workflows for comparing and manipulating options created by different AI models. It also facilitated putting imagery through multiple rounds of polishing and remixing, adding a large dose of human taste and quality control to the process. According to Field, they were mesmerized by what they saw. We had it scheduled for 20 minutes, he remembers. And 20 minutes came, and everyone’s like, ‘No, no, please keep going. We’ll cancel the next sessionthis is the most magical thing.’ We went for an hour. The tool that wowed the Figmates, as Figma employees call themselves, was the creation of an Israeli startup. Both were known as Weavybut not for long. Figma had already agreed to acquire the company. Slightly rebranded as Figma Weave, its product will join Figmas growing portfolio of web-based apps for designing interfaces, whiteboarding ideas, creating presentations, AI-assisted coding, and more. [Image: Weavy] Figma isnt disclosing the terms of the acquisition, its first since its July IPO. It will result in around a dozen Weavy staffers joining the company, including cofounders Lior Albeck, Jonathan Alumot, Jonathan Gur-Zeev, and Itay Schiff. Describing its vision as artistic intelligence, the startup was founded in 2024 and announced a $4 million seed funding last June. In its short existence, it had lined up an impressive customer list, including Google, Nvidia, Toyota, Dyson, Panasonic, and HP. Its products interface provides a canvas for connecting building blocks called nodes to create a flowchart-like system of inputs and outputs. One example project starts by feeding a prompt into several still-image generators, then sends the nicest one on to serve as source material for several video generators. Another deconstructs an image into editable layers, allowing for the sort of masking and tweaking that was once solely the province of a product such as Photoshop. A third starts with an actual beauty shot of a dessert taken in a studio, then generates purely synthetic images of other foodstuffs that retain its look and feel. Workflows can accept user input that affects their operation, turning them into mini-apps with ongoing value. [Photo: Weavy] Many tools have long helped users perform programming-like feats via workflow builders with some conceptual similarities to Weave, if not its emphasis on AI and imagery. One you might be familiar with is Apples Shortcuts. Field himself remembers using another called LabVIEW in middle school. But the unusual degree of buzz around Weavys implementation of the idea attracted his attention. I started to hear about it from people who are connoisseurs of product and have good taste, he says. It spiked as something to check out. Meeting with the startups founders, Field bonded over their approach to balancing power and approachability, which struck him as Figma-esque. As he explains it, My job to get right every day, from a product standpoint, is, how do you balance the power of a tool with approachability and simplicity? It’s a constant battle. I just felt like the way that they were thinking about that aspect was extraordinary. [Photo: Figma] Field was also attracted by the fact that their product didnt spit out AI images and videos allegedly ready for use. Instead, it was about making it easier for human creators to slice, dice, and otherwise rework them before they ever appeared anywhere. Its easy to consider AI outputs as the final destination, but that’s not the way you should think about it, he says. Theyre just this new creative starting point. You can use them like clay, and you can figure out how to transform them. And I think [Figma Weave] does a really good job of showing how it’s possible. Field says that Figma is working on integrating Weave with its broader ecosystemboth aking it possible to bring Figma designs into Weave and adding elements of Weave to other products. Its also planning to speed further development through additional hires. Maybe most of all, hes mindful of the delicate work involved in not screwing up what Weavy created on its own. They’ve got the trust of their community, he told me. I think it’s very important for Figma to show that we’ll be a good steward of the team, of this platformand that we’re doing everything we can to help them build.
Category:
E-Commerce
The Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter point Wednesday for the second time since September. Before that, it had gone nine months without a cut.The federal funds rate is the rate at which banks borrow and lend to one another. While the rates consumers pay to borrow money aren’t directly linked to this rate, shifts affect what you pay for credit cards, auto loans, mortgages, and other financial products.“While the full economic impact of such a move will unfold over time, early indicators suggest that even modest rate cuts can have meaningful consequences for consumer behavior and financial health,” said Michele Raneri, vice president and head of U.S. research at credit reporting agency TransUnion.The Fed has two goals when it sets the rate: one, to manage prices for goods and services, and two, to encourage full employment. Typically, the Fed might increase the rate to try to bring down inflation and decrease it to encourage faster economic growth and increase hiring. The challenge now is that inflation is higher than the Fed’s 2% target but the job market has been weak. The government shutdown has also prevented the collection and release of data the Fed relies on to monitor the health of the economy.Still, the Fed has projected it will cut rates once more before the end of the year.Here’s what to know: Interest on savings accounts won’t be as appealing For savers, falling interest rates will slowly erode attractive yields currently on offer with certificates of deposit (CDs) and high-yield savings accounts.Three of the top five high yield savings accounts had rate cuts after the last Fed rate cut in September, according to Ken Tumin, founder of DepositAccounts.com, while two of the big five banks (Ally and Discover/Capital One) cut their savings account rates. The top rates for high yield savings account right now remain around 4.46% to 4.6%.Those are still better than the trends of recent years, and a good option for consumers who want to earn a return on money they may want to access in the near-term. A high yield savings account generally has a much higher annual percentage yield than a traditional savings account. The national average for traditional savings accounts is currently 0.63%, according to Bankrate.There may be a few accounts with returns of about 4% through the end of 2025, according to Tumin, but the Fed cuts will filter down to these offerings, lowering the average yields as they do. A cut will impact mortgages gradually For prospective homebuyers, the market has already priced in the rate cut.“Mortgage rates, in particular, have responded swiftly,” said Raneri. “Just in the past week, they fell to their lowest level in over a year. While mortgage rates don’t always move in lockstep with the Fed’s target rate often pricing in anticipated future cuts, the continued easing of monetary policy may well push rates even lower.”Bankrate financial analyst Stephen Kates said a declining interest rate environment will provide some relief for borrowers over time.“Whether it’s a homeowner with a 7% mortgage or a recent graduate hoping to refinance student loans and credit card debt, lower rates can ease the burden on many indebted households by opening opportunities to refinance or consolidate,” he said. Auto loans are not expected to decline soon Americans have faced steeper auto loan rates over the last three years after the Fed raised its benchmark interest rate starting in early 2022. Those are not expected to decline anytime soon. While a cut will contribute to eventual relief, it might be slow in arriving, analysts say.“If the auto market starts to freeze up and people aren’t buying cars, then we may see lending margins start to shrink, but auto loan rates don’t move in lockstep with the Fed rate,” Kates said.Prices for new cars remain at historically high levels, not adjusting for inflation.Generally speaking, an auto loan annual percentage rate can run from about 4% to 30%. Bankrate’s most recent weekly survey found that average auto loan interest rates are currently at 7.10% on a 60-month new car loan. Credit card rate relief could be slow Interest rates for credit cards are currently at an average of 20.01%, and the Fed’s rate cut may be slow to be felt by anyone carrying a large amount of credit card debt. That said, any reduction is positive news.“While inflation continues to exert pressure on household budgets, rate cuts offer a potential counterbalance by lowering debt servicing costs,” Raneri said.Still, the best thing for anyone carrying a large credit card balance is to prioritize paying down high-interest-rate debt, and to seek to transfer any amounts possible to lower APR cards or negotiate directly with credit card companies for accommodation. The Associated Press receives support from the Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism. Cora Lewis, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||