Welcome to a new edition of Partners Update Digest from the Atlanta Fed. This edition includes articles that reveal recent findings from the Federal Reserve’s national survey on COVID-19’s impact on communities, highlight a new data tool that shares timely, comprehensive insight on unemployment insurance claims, provide perspective on protecting vulnerable communities from COVID-19, and consider the potential financial assistance that a hypothetical laid-off worker would receive in two cities in the Southeast.
How has COVID-19 affected community-based organizations?
Nearly 4,000 people working in low-income communities tell us that COVID-19 disruption is significant, and recovery will take over a year. Two-thirds of these community organizations are seeing increased demand for their services; at the same time, over half noted a corresponding decrease in their ability to provide needed services. These are pressing issues challenging the economic resilience of communities. Tracking and sharing information about these challenges is the intent of a new Federal Reserve System survey. Perspectives from Main Street: The Impact of COVID-19 on Communities and the Entities Serving Them is the first report summarizing findings from this survey of nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and other community organizations. The survey will be conducted every eight weeks, with findings released soon after. To learn more, contact Karen Leone de Nie.
Understanding unemployment insurance claims
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unparalleled economic slowdown and record numbers of layoffs. Even casual economic observers have seen reports of millions of workers filing claims for unemployment insurance, but what exactly does this mean for unemployment? To explore this question, the Atlanta Fed’s Center for Workforce and Economic created the Unemployment Claims Monitor. This data tool allows users to better track who has filed unemployment insurance claims and the geographic, demographic, and industrial concentrations of job losses. Updated weekly with U.S. Department of Labor data, the tool provides timely, comprehensive insight on trends in unemployment. For more information, contact Stuart Andreason or Mels de Zeeuw.
Protecting vulnerable communities from COVID-19
COVID-19 is having disproportionate health and economic impacts on racial and ethnic minority, low-income, low-wealth, and rural residents. Data from the Kaiser Family Foundation estimates that almost 41 percent of all adults (16 million) in states within the Atlanta Fed’s District are at risk of complications from an infection due to preexisting health conditions, a higher share than the United States at large (38 percent). A recent Partners Update article examines research on tracking the virus’s spread to explore the practices and policies that might mitigate the financial and health risks to disadvantaged populations. For more information, contact Ann Carpenter.
Amid the COVID-19 crisis, a tale of two southeastern cities
Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act)and other legislation to help workers who have lost their jobs during the pandemic. This Partners Update article shows how this new assistance supplements the preexisting social safety net. Specifically, the authors ask how the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCR Act), the CARES Act, and the social safety net financially support a hypothetical displaced restaurant worker. The authors present a case study in two locations: Birmingham, Alabama, and Miami, Florida. For more information, contact Alexander Ruder.
COVID-19 resources and events
For the full set of related resources from the Atlanta Fed, visit our new hub where you can learn about monetary policy actions, how to avoid scams, and more. The page is updated regularly with new information, so check back often.
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