Glossary

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U

Unemployment Insurance:
A benefit offered by every state and the District of Columbia that provides temporary financial resources to workers who become unemployed through no fault of their own, which can be accessed through the One-Stop Career Center System.
Source: Department of Labor

U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS):
On March 1, 2003 service and benefit functions of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) transitioned into the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The President nominated Eduardo Aguirre to lead the USCIS; he was confirmed by the Senate on June 19, 2003. The USCIS is responsible for the administration of immigration and naturalization adjudication functions and establishing immigration services policies and priorities. These functions include: adjudication of immigrant visa petitions; adjudication of naturalization petitions;adjudication of asylum and refugee applications; adjudications performed at the service centers, and all other adjudications performed by the INS.

U.S. Department of Agriculture:
The U.S. Department of Agriculture administers the Food Stamp Program at the Federal level through its Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). State welfare offices administer the program at the state and local levels, including determination of eligibility and allotments, and distribution of benefits.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS):
The Department of Health and Human Services is the United States Government's principal agency for protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services, especially for those who are least able to help themselves. The department includes more than 300 programs, covering a wide spectrum of activities. These include medical and social science research, preventing outbreak of infectious disease, assuring food and drug safety, Medicare and Medicaid, financial assistance, and services for low-income families, improving maternal and infant health, Head Start (pre-school education and services), and comprehensive health services for Native Americans.
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD):
Created as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson's War on Poverty, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) was established as a Cabinet Department by the Department of Housing and Urban Development Act in 1965. HUD is the Federal agency responsible for national policy and programs that address America's housing needs, that improve and develop the Nation's communities, and that enforce fair housing laws. HUD's business is helping create a decent home and suitable living environment for all Americans and has given America's communities a strong national voice at the Cabinet level. HUD plays a major role in supporting homeownership by underwriting homeownership for lower and moderate-income families through its mortgage insurance programs.

The primary programs administered by HUD include: mortgage and loan insurance through the Federal Housing Administration; Community Development Block Grants (CDBG); HOME Investment Partnership Act block grants to develop and support affordable housing for low-income residents; rental assistance in the form of Section 8 certificates or vouchers for low-income households; public or subsidized housing for low-income individuals and families; homeless assistance provided through local communities and faith-based and other nonprofit organizations; and fair housing public education and enforcement.

HUD provides funds to state and local governments and to nonprofit organizations to assist homeless individuals and families. The funds are used to help the homeless move from the streets, to temporary shelter, to supportive housing (with services, if necessary), and ultimately back to the mainstream of American life. The Office of Community Planning and Development (CPD) administers most of HUD's homeless assistance programs, including Shelter Plus Care, Supportive Housing, Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation (SRO), Emergency Shelter Grants and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA).
Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development