Why Do Housing Mobility Programs Fail in Moving Households to Better Neighborhoods?

This article conceptualizes the relationship between housing instability, residential mobility, and neighborhood quality. We summarize the existing literature about residential mobility and housing instability and examine their potential interactions along three dimensions: (a) the reasons for a move, including a variety of push and pull factors; (b) mobility outcomes in terms of whether moves result in residing in a better or worse neighborhood than that of the prior residence; and, especially important for low-income households, (c) the degree to which the current move and past experiences of moving have been discretionary or forced. Housing instability is a cumulative concept, with involuntary moves at its center. This synthetic model of housing instability's impact on mobility outcomes suggests that the more instability a household has experienced, the less likely mobility moves are to occur, or, if they do occur, to be long lasting. Policy implementation may underestimate the interaction between cumulative housing instability and residential mobility in housing mobility policies. Thus, these interactions have implications for mobility policies, pointing toward a path for future research that inform policies to move low-income households toward both greater housing stability and better neighborhood outcomes.     

Systematic analysis of explosive residues.

A scheme for systematic analysis of explosive residues is presented and demonstrated by test explosions using commercial, military, and homemade explosives. The significance of reaction product identification is demonstrated.     

Beyond NIMBY and poverty deconcentration: reframing the outcomes of affordable rental housing development

Policies and research around affordable rental housing remain stuck between the “rock” of not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) fears and the “hard place” of deconcentrating poverty goals, leading to fragmented outcome measurement in contemporary project-based affordable rental housing programs. This article compares the motivations and results of existing research focused on NIMBY concerns around place to that of programs that promote the deconcentration of poor people. We suggest reframing the argument for project-based affordable rental housing by bolstering outcome measurement on neighborhoods and developments and expanding it to include tenants. Building upon current evaluation practices of mobility studies and the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program, we present a comprehensive framework for evaluating outcomes of project-based rental housing developments within their local context at three relevant scales: project, household, and community. We present an array of indicators and examine data collection needs and limitations, acknowledging the political and financial obstacles to comprehensive evaluation but arguing for the need to justify expenditures and prove results to the public. We recommend that government agencies stretch beyond NIMBY arguments and deconcentration of poverty goals to be proactive in targeting, measuring, publicizing, and redressing an expanded set of outcomes through better comprehensive planning for affordable housing. Through more rigorous and comprehensive evaluation of outcomes at all scales, it may be shown that affordable housing development yields a broad range of benefits for the people housed, projects financed, and the communities where it is built.     

More Good Than Harm: Legal Orphans and the New Jersey Post‐Termination Project

In 1997, Congress enacted the Adoption and Safe Families Act to increase the rate at which states achieve permanent placements for children in foster care. Despite the Congressional mandate, the rate of permanent placements has lagged. This article discusses the development and implementation of the Post‐Termination Project employed by the New Jersey Superior Court—Essex Vicinage to address the rate at which permanent placements are achieved. The Project, which relies upon a multi‐agency approach overseen by a single judge, has been successful at increasing the permanent placement rate in the Essex Vicinage.