By Miquéla V Thornton, Bloomberg News

With heat advisories blanketing the eastern half of the U.S., air conditioners are once again working over time as essential resources to keep millions cool. But they’re unevenly distributed: Many poor households are unable to afford them.

To reduce the gap between the air conditioning haves and have nots, a growing number of programs are giving them out for free with waiting lists numbering in the thousands. And they view them as means to protect public health and reduce poverty.

Heat-related deaths have doubled over the last quarter century, and more people will be at risk as the planet warms. Temperature increases are correlated with higher disease risk and mortality rates. Extreme heat can reduce productivity, impact children’s cognitive development and lower overall well-being.

“Each individual heat-related death is preventable,” said Kai Chen, a researcher of environmental health at Yale University, “and in the past 20 years, air conditioning use has drastically reduced heat-related mortality.”

He added that without ACs, the amount of heat-related deaths in the US would likely double, especially for older adults.

There are 14 million households without air conditioning in the U.S., but lack of access is more acute in some communities. In New York, 10% of households don’t have AC, but that percentage doubles in many Black, Latino and low-income neighborhoods. Over 500 people die from heat in New York City each summer, mostly at home with a broken or underpowered air conditioner, according to the city’s most recent report on heat mortality. The top reason for the lack of cooling: cost.

The state’s Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) provides ACs to low-income households with members over 65 or under 6, and Gov. Kathy Hochul launched a program in June that makes units available to any low-income adult with asthma, which is exacerbated by heat.

The new program, which distributes the ACs through enrollment in the state’s Essentials Healthcare Plan, focuses on ages that HEAP does not cover.

“We think this is really important as extreme weather events are happening more and more and with a lower-income population with health needs, this is absolutely a meaningful way we can help them manage their health,” said Danielle Holahan, executive director at New York State of Health, the state’s marketplace for affordable health insurance, which administers the program.

But the program and others like it face challenges due to funding cuts. Federal money for many state-level heating and cooling relief programs is in peril, and energy-efficiency tax credits, which help households afford better cooling appliances, have been cut as part of President Donald Trump’s recently signed tax law.

The bedrock of New York’s program, the Essentials Healthcare Plan, was implemented under the Affordable Care Act. According to Holahan, the program has funding for the next five years, but cuts to the ACA in the new law could remove eligibility for about 730,000 enrollees, especially lawfully present immigrants.

Local, nongovernmental groups run similar programs and have found strong demand. In Cincinnati, which will see a run of extreme heat break by the end of the week, there’s a waiting list of more than 2,700 people for a program that gives out free air conditioners.

The program, run by the anti-homelessness charity St. Vincent de Paul, provides ACs to anyone 65 and older or with a medical need. Their waiting list grew by 700 in the last few weeks alone.

While St. Vincent de Paul Cincinnati’s program initially gave out fans, that felt like a “band-aid” for a persistent problem, said Kaytlynd Leinhart, who leads the organization’s development and marketing. The group switched to ACs in 2019. It is funded by local donors, businesses and foundations.

Leinhart said nonprofits carry more responsibility after pandemic-era support tapered off. She emphasized how cooling can be a stepping stone out of a crisis by providing something as simple as good night’s sleep.

“If you’re a single mom on one income, imagine that that’s how you’re starting your day every day, with your baby having not slept, you’ve not slept, you’ve been severely uncomfortable all night,” she said.

Providing a free AC can help individuals cope with heat stress and better attend to pressing challenges.

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Demand is especially high this year. The Cincinnati program gave out over 700 ACs in both 2023 and 2024 while in 2022, it provided 980 units. This year, it expects to exceed 1,000 units.

However, providing that many will cost $110,000, and the group only has $75,000 in funding this year. With such a long waitlist, many won’t receive relief.

Climate change is making summers hotter in New York and Cincinnati, places that already regularly experience temperatures above 90F (32C). Traditionally cool cities where air conditioning is less prevalent are also seeing temperatures rise. As it gets hotter, though, free home cooling programs are becoming more common.

“Cooling is going from being a luxury or a ‘nice to have’ in many places to being essential for health and safety,” said Laila Atalla, a building decarbonization expert at clean energy nonprofit RMI.

In the wake of a 2021 heat dome that killed hundreds across the US Pacific Northwest and Canada, the city of Portland, Oregon, formed Cooling Portland with the nonprofit Earth Advantage to install energy-efficient heat pumps in households at high risk of heat-related illness.

Using heat pumps is the ideal solution because of their reliability, smaller environmental footprint and affordability, reducing cooling costs by about 20%, Atalla said.

In 2022, Cooling Portland set a target of installing 15,000 units by 2027, but it reached that goal earlier this summer and plans to install 5,000 units this year alone. In a city that is 70% white, the program is helping close the racial cooling disparity: Of those served, about a third are Black and 14% Hispanic or Latino.

Portland funds its work through a 1% surcharge on local billion-dollar corporations, passed via a 2018 ballot measure. The fund — which has raised $1.2 billion — can only be used for climate justice initiatives.

Amidst the Trump administration’s cuts to social welfare and climate programs, Atalla said that local governments and utilities can do more to improve cooling access using money they already have. They noted that the US spends $9 billion a year on energy efficiency programs that only 3% of households take advantage of because of complex applications, inconsistent eligibility requirements and income verification hurdles.

“There’s an equity dimension here too,” Atalla said. “Low-income households are about one-third as likely to receive an energy-efficiency incentive.”

Atalla underscored that programs that can help cover the costs of energy bills — which low-income households spend a disproportionate amount of income in — can also help make free air conditioner programs more effective. They also pointed to a Colorado bill that would prevent utilities from disconnecting power for nonpayment during extreme heat events as another means to keep people safe.

©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

By George Hobica, Tribune News Service

“Why is everyone going to Portugal?” my friend Justin asked when I told him I was going there for a visit.

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People travel for many reasons, but visiting friends and relatives (VFR in industry-speak) is one of the largest and most resilient segments of the travel industry. Travelers spend over $400 billion a year doing it.

And it was the primary reason for my trip to Portugal. I’d been promising to visit my friend Bill, who had became an “everyone” like thousands of Americans in recent years who have relocated to the coastal European country.

I also planned to visit my friend John, whom I first met in junior high school more than 50 years ago. He was planning to visit the country with his son, yet another person planning to join “everyone” moving there.

But first I would stop in Boston to visit my sister, whom I hadn’t seen in a while. She was not planning on moving to Portugal, but it happened that TAP Air Portugal was launching a nonstop flight from Boston to Porto, Portugal’s second-largest city after Lisbon. So I booked a seat on the inaugural flight, boarded a plane from my home in New York City, had dinner at the Boston Harbor Hotel with my sis, and then flew to Porto the same night. I thought this would be a perfect way to reconnect with three people I had neglected too long, while also trying to find out why so many people are moving to Portugal (I was genuinely curious).

First, let me make clear that saying “everyone” is going to Portugal is a bit of an exaggeration, but more than 21,000 Americans have moved there, either permanently or as temporary residents, in the last few years. They’re the largest group of transplants, followed by the Chinese. Fifteen percent of the country’s 10.6 million residents are from outside the country.

I had visited Lisbon once, in the 1980s, staying at what is now the Lapa Palace Hotel, then owned by the Orient-Express Hotels group, when it was affordable. Compared to the rest of Europe, Lisbon seemed like it had been left behind in a time warp, with its streets and sidewalks paved with tiny bits of stone and its vintage “elétricos” — the city’s ancient tram lines made from wood and polished brass — weaving through narrow streets — as iconic as San Francisco’s cable cars.

I rarely buy souvenirs, but I was enchanted by Portuguese majolica pottery, hand-painted in vibrant colors and depicting small woodland creatures, plants and flowers. Somehow I managed not to break anything bringing my treasures home.

So there I was again in Portugal, and I was glad to see that not much had changed, other than the influx of Americans and others.

Statistics help explain some of Portugal’s appeal. Something called the Global Peace Index, an annual survey of crime and violence data compiled by the Australia-based Institute for Economics & Peace, ranks Portugal at No. 7, just below Switzerland (the lower rankings means safer). The U.S., however, is at 132, incredibly just ahead of Iran. Portugal’s violent crime rate is one-tenth of the U.S. rate.

The day I arrived, a big soccer match was in town, and it was the last day of national elections (10 political parties are in the national assembly, and citizens can vote online). I have no idea which team or candidate won. The city was quiet. No demonstrations or post-game riots like you’d find in Paris or Philadelphia or Los Angeles or Washington, D.C. There were no roving gangs of disgruntled voters rampaging through the streets or mindless teenagers sacking retail stores just for fun. There was none of this in Porto. No sense that things were about to fall apart.

Then there’s the slower pace, and better work-life balance. The Wall Street Journal reported recently that job listings in the U.S. increasingly stress the importance of working 70 or more hours a week. “If you’re looking for work-life balance,” one job listing states, “this isn’t it.”

And if you’re looking for a stressful life, Portugal isn’t it.

Health care is more affordable, with comprehensive private insurance premiums costing about $1,000 per year (public insurance is free).

English is widely spoken, in part thanks to the long presence, starting in the 16th century, of the English in the production of port wine.

The cost of living in Portugal is 36% less than in the U.S. according to a 2024 survey.

Portugal is “orderly and relaxed.” My friend Bill summed it up when we met over brunch on my next-to-last day in his new country. “Every time I turn around, the Portuguese are off work celebrating another holiday. Meanwhile Americans are lucky to get two weeks off per year working at a job that offers no employment contract, which is standard. There’s no social safety net in the U.S. Portugal has universal health care.”

In Porto I took a walking tour with Bliss Tours (blisstours.pt, $27 per person), led by Porto native Duarte Vieira. I recommend it — and him. When I got back home I texted him to ask what he likes best about his country. He came back, “The weather, the food, but mostly the safe life.” Again the safety thing. Maybe all those ex-pats are moving to Portugal for some peace and quiet.

The thing he liked least? “The low salaries.” Which helps to explain that 36% lower cost of living.

Not ready to move? There’s still a lot to see and do.

Braga Cathedral was begun in the 12th century and today celebrates a range of styles: Romanesque, Baroque, Gothic and others. (George Hobica/TNS/TNS)

Even though I went to see friends and family, in truth the visits were of necessity short and I had lots of free time. For the tourist there are 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Portugal — more per acre than in the U.K. or France. One of them is the historic center of Guimarães, a town a few miles north of Porto. I took a walking tour there. It was a feast for the eyes. Red-tiled roofs, streets and sidewalks paved with tiles known as calçada portuguesa, or Portuguese pavement, made from small pieces of white and black limestone, sometimes of basalt and granite. Narrow winding streets lined with tile-clad houses spanning in age from medieval times to the 19th century, with those cute little trams dating from the 1930s rattling and squealing past.

I visited some churches and cathedrals, of which Portugal has many. Braga Cathedral was started in the 12th century in a mishmash of styles — Romanesque, Baroque, Gothic and others. I was surprised to see so few visitors inside. My guide said that a recent admission charge (all of $2.30) was the reason, but I think it’s just that relatively few people visit Braga compared to other cities in Europe with architectural jewels like this.

And that’s the other thing about Portugal, especially the north where I stayed: it’s not over-touristed compared to much of Europe these days. That said, the very things that make Portugal so attractive to outsiders is making living there more difficult for the Portuguese. The influx of tourists and people seeking residency is driving up housing costs and changing the nature of neighborhoods, in Lisbon especially, as apartments are turned into short-term Airbnb rentals.

Porto is well known for Port wine, although it’s made in the surrounding countryside, with its hills covered in vines, offering many opportunities for tastings. I visited Quinta da Roêda, a vineyard owned by Croft Port, founded in 1588, in the Douro Valley (another World Heritage Site), where I took a cruise on the Douro River with Deltatur (deltatur.pt), a local tour provider offering 16 options starting at $35. Nearby, I took a cooking class at Quinta da Pacheca, a country hotel set amid extensive vineyards.

Port tastings are a popular activity in the Douro Valley. (George Hobica/TNS/TNS)

Also in Porto, I strolled through the Matosinhos Municipal Market, where dozens of vendors sell everything the sea has to offer. It made me wish there was something like that back home. The surrounding restaurants, such as Bistrô by Vila Foz where I dined, are happy to prepare your “catch” to order. I caught some jumbo shrimp, freshly caught not farmed, and huge.

Because Bill was staying there and highly recommended it, on my last night in Porto I checked into the Rosa Et Al (rosaetal.com), a six-suite townhouse hotel where the rooms are decorated with modern and vintage furniture and the daily brunch is a local favorite. It’s also a deli and restaurant; I’ve never stayed anywhere quite like it. A bargain at about $140 per night. Bill took me on a walk of his favorite parts of the city and then dashed off to catch his bus back to Lisbon, two hours away. It was a short visit, but sometimes that’s all you need.

That night I had dinner with John down the street from my hotel, also a short visit. He had just arrived in Porto and was hungry, but it was 10 p.m. and I wondered if anything was open. Walking not far we came across O Afonso, where every table was taken but one. As in Spain, people eat late here. We reminisced over a Porto specialty, Francesinhas, which is basically a Portuguese adaptation of the French croque-monsieur: layers of toasted bread and sliced beef, wet-cured ham, linguiça, or chipolata topped with melted cheese and served with a sauce of tomato and beer and fries. After 50 years, our memories had faded along with much else, but by combining what I remembered with what John remembered we were able to piece something together. At the end of the meal we were served a free glass of port wine and the proprietor shook our hands and thanked us for coming. The damage came to $22 per person including tax and service.

The next morning I packed and crossed the garden to the hotel’s living room, where breakfast was supposed to be served, but even at 9 a.m. no one was stirring, so I left (“that’s laid-back Portugal for you!” Bill texted later; they quickly refunded the prepaid $15 charge when I returned home). I was going to take the train to the airport ($3) but a car to the airport cost just $16. The line at border control was long but moved quickly, and the agent wished me a pleasant journey with a smile.

Time goes faster and faster as we get older, and sometimes we put off reconnecting with friends and family too long. It felt really good to see some people who meant something to me. Still, as much as I admire the advantages of living in Portugal, I will not be moving there, not quite yet anyway. But I will be making an effort to do more “VFR” travel. For me, it’s the best reason to leave home.

©2025 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

By Nada Hassanein, Stateline.org

Victoria Gomez de la Torre doesn’t know when — or if — the migrant children she serves are going to get the education help they’ve come to rely on.

Gomez de la Torre oversees the migrant education program for 12 central Florida counties. The federally funded service helps the children of migrant agricultural workers, who move within and between states based on planting and harvesting seasons.

Her staff identifies agricultural workers who’ve migrated to the area and helps them enroll their children in school. It also helps connect them with tutoring and medical care.

Earlier this summer, the Trump administration froze more than $6 billion in education funding, including money for migrant education, after-school programs, English-language programs for non-native speakers and other grants. Congress had already approved the money, but the administration said it wanted to conduct a review of the programs.

The administration announced last Friday it would release the remaining $5.5 billion of the money, after unfreezing $1.3 billion earlier this month.

But for Gomez de la Torre’s program, the damage had already been done: Without the money, it had to shut down this summer.

“We didn’t have enough money left over to carry the program,” said Joram Rejouis, the director of program development for the public schools in Alachua County, which includes Gainesville and is the largest of the 12 counties. “Definitely, stopping the program caused damage.”

The program came to a complete halt when Gomez de la Torre’s 11 staff members were offered other positions in the school district. Throughout July, about five dozen migrant children across the 12 counties were without summer services. The funds were supposed to go out before the start of the month.

“It’s going horrendously,” said Gomez de la Torre. “Migrant families depend on us, rely on our system and our help.”

The Alachua County program serves about 1,000 to 1,200 children of migrant workers throughout the year, many in rural farming communities. Each year, roughly 17,000 migrant children are served by programs across Florida.

“It is a very valuable program for a very vulnerable population,” Rejouis said. “Definitely, stopping the program caused damage, period — for the families, for the program and for the district.”

Migrant children are less likely to have regular primary care and are more likely to face health conditions such as anemia and high blood pressure. Many migrant families who harvest food in the fields don’t have enough food themselves.

The program also helps with communication and translation among parents, teachers and guidance counselors. “We were their go-to for whenever they needed something,” Gomez de la Torre said. “Now, they don’t have us.”

The freeze in funds added to the uncertainty and fear created by the Trump administration’s broader moves to target benefits for immigrants. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently announced it had added Head Start to the list of public programs that would be closed to immigrants who are here illegally. After the funding announcement earlier this month, a senior official said the administration had established “guardrails” to ensure the funds are not used “in violation of Executive Orders.”

“It’s anybody’s guess when we’ll come back,” Gomez de la Torre said. “If we’ll come back. If people who chose to retire will return, if their retirement can be rescinded. … Nobody knows exactly how it’s going to play out.”

A similar story is unfolding in California.

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The statewide Mini Corps program, run by the Butte County Office of Education, north of Sacramento, connects migrant children at schools and labor camps with bilingual tutors who help them during the school day. Many of the tutors are former migrant children themselves, said Yvette Medina, who oversees the program.

The funding freeze forced the office to lay off around 400 workers statewide, according to spokesperson Travis Souders. Despite Friday’s announcement, the organization is waiting for official word — in writing — before reversing layoffs.

“There’s going to be many students out there who are just going to have another disadvantage to the disadvantages that we already have,” Medina said.

In Santa Clara County, which includes San Jose, the program was forced to shut down altogether, according to Medina.

Medina grew up in migrant labor camps, following her parents to the fields at 4 a.m. as they picked cherries and grapes before she went to school. Her parents worked throughout the Central Valley, back in Mexico and up and down the West Coast, all the way to Oregon.

“It is devastating,” she said. “If it wasn’t for the migrant program, I know for a fact there’s no way I would have graduated high school.”

Migrant families already are gripped with fear as the Trump administration ramps up immigration raids and arrests, which President Donald Trump insists are focused on those with criminal histories.

“They are terrified,” Gomez de la Torre said. “We had families stop sending kids to school and others who fled the country.”

Ruby Luis, a consultant who helps school districts across Florida identify and enroll migrant students in school, also was a migrant child. Her parents worked in orange groves, at strawberry and Christmas tree farms and produce-packing houses.

Program tutors read books with her and gave her school supplies. The program took her on college tours and she enrolled via a scholarship for migrant children — a first-generation college student. She eventually graduated with a degree in biology.

“Just having even somebody to talk to you about going to college — because you don’t have anybody to talk to about [that],” she said. “Having that support was really impactful.

“To take that away, and then now they just have to navigate it themselves, it creates these barriers,” Luis said. “And it can ultimately leave these children not having access to education.”

Stateline reporter Nada Hassanein can be reached at nhassanein@stateline.org.

©2025 States Newsroom. Visit at stateline.org. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

By CORA LEWIS

NEW YORK (AP) — Millions of student borrowers could begin having their wages garnished as soon as this summer, according to estimates from credit bureau TransUnion.

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The company predicts that by August roughly 3 million borrowers could move into default, meaning they’re 270 days past due on payments. At that point, loan holders are at risk of having 15% of their pay docked by the government, with the money going toward the outstanding debt. There has been no clear indication of when wage garnishment will start.

After the pandemic-era pause on student loan payments ended in May, borrowers have had to reassess the state of their loans and budgets. According to TransUnion, another 2 million borrowers are on course to default in September.

A Biden-administration grace period, during which late or missed payments were not counted against credit scores, ended in the fall.

Since then, millions of borrowers have seen hits to their credit ratings.

Here’s what to know:

What you can do to prepare

“The most important thing borrowers can do before administrative wage garnishment restarts is to log into studentaid.gov to check whether their federal student loans are in default and take steps now to remove them from default,” said Kyra Taylor, staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center.

Taylor said it’s not uncommon for borrowers to be unaware that their loans are in default. If borrowers attended college or graduate school during different periods of time, or if they have different federal loan types, they may also have multiple student loan servicers.

If that’s the case, you should act now to get your loans out of default and back into good standing by either entering a rehabilitation agreement, where you must make nine consecutive payments based on their income, or by consolidating your loans into a new federal Direct Loan.

“Because this hasn’t happened for so long, there are many people who have no idea they’re at risk,” said Aissa Canchola Bañez, policy director at the Student Borrower Protection Center.

Wait times for student borrowers attempting to contact their loan servicers have been long, with many dropped calls, in part due to layoffs at the Education Department. Bañez recommends contacting your congressperson, using a casework tool that can guide you through submitting a constituent request.

“These offices have entire teams dedicated to constituent casework for when you have an issue with a federal agency, such as the Department of Education,” she said. “So you can request assistance from your member of congress — your representative or senator.”

What happens if you remain in default

Until past due payments are paid or the loan’s default status is resolved, borrowers are at risk of having up to 15% of their wages deducted directly from their paychecks.

The Department of Education has sent notices to borrowers warning that tax refunds and wages could be withheld starting this summer if borrowers don’t take steps to restart payments. The department hasn’t yet provided additional information on timing.

Richelle Brooks, 37, an education administrator based in Los Angeles, said she’s received warnings and notices about the resumption of collection of her loans. For several degrees, she still has $239,000 in outstanding debt, and she was informed her monthly payments on those loans will be roughly $3,000.

“I can’t afford it,” she said. “We just came out of the moratorium — not paying for five years. People getting these notices — they’re terrified. I’m uneasy, too.”

Brooks said she’s an informed borrower who stays up to date on each development and who knows her options. She plans to enroll in coding classes, at least half-time, which could place her loans in deferment, so she wouldn’t be required to make monthly payments, while she makes a financial plan.

Some options if you fear your wages will be garnished

There’s still time to take action.

According to Taylor, the Department of Education must provide 30 days notice before it sends a garnishment order to your employer. During that time, you can request a hearing to object by telling the department that the garnishment would cause you financial hardship. You can also request that the department reduce the amount being garnished and submit documentation about your income and expenses.

To do this, you must make your hearing request in writing, postmarked no later than 30 days after the garnishment order. Your loan holder will then arrange the hearing. If you’re unsure who your loan holder is, you can contact the Education Department’s Default Resolution Group.

If you were laid off from your last job, you can also object to garnishment if you have not been in your current job for 12 consecutive months. You can further request a hearing and object if you submitted an application for certain kinds of statutory discharges and those have not yet been decided. Some common reasons for statutory discharge of student loans include: if the school you attended closed before you could complete your degree, if your school owes you a refund but fails to pay it, if you’re experiencing total disability, or if you’re experiencing bankruptcy.

“If the borrower requests a hearing within 30 days after receiving the garnishment notice, the department cannot start garnishment until it issues a decision on the borrower’s objections and financial hardship request,” Taylor said.

You can request a hearing after the 30 day period is up, but in those cases the department will generally not stop garnishing your wages while the hearing request is pending.

The Associated Press receives support from 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.