Federal Benefits Program

Is Social Security out of money for payouts to be made starting June 1, 2025? No, that's not true: This was implied by a post on Threads that did not cite any official document, did not link to expert analysis or provided no financial records. The Social Security Trust Fund, from which benefits are paid, was solvent on the day…

Does a proposed New York state constitutional amendment "grant" voting rights "to illegal aliens" and "strip parental rights" by not informing parents without the child's approval about their decision to get gender transition surgery? No, that's not true: There is no mention anywhere in the proposed amendment of giving undocumented immigrants voting rights. The proposed amendment bans discrimination against gender…

Is the $750 in initial federal aid to Hurricane Helene victims a loan that must be paid back or people's property could be seized? No, that's not true: The $750, which comes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Serious Needs Assistance program, is a grant, not a loan, and does not need to be repaid. Additionally, the agency's website states…

Does federal disaster assistance to Helene victims amount to no more than $750 per family? No, that's not true: The White House stated that the $750 in Serious Needs Assistance is an immediate direct payment to eligible households for essential items like food, baby formula, water, medications and other emergency supplies. A FEMA spokesperson told Lead Stories, "that's not the…

Were mammograms banned in Switzerland as of July 22, 2024, as a post on Instagram claimed? No, that's not true: Switzerland's Federal Department of Home Affairs told Lead Stories that "mammography is not banned at all in Switzerland." It is covered by health insurance and recommended by health experts for women over 40. The claim appeared in a post on…

Does the conservative "Project 2025" initiative to reshape the U.S. government call for a ban on abortion and contraceptives, increased retirement age, cuts in Social Security and Medicare benefits, plus elimination of overtime pay and of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found these claims, posted on Facebook, to be false by reviewing the…

Did a migrant who was angry that he had not received a packet of government benefits throw a rock from an interstate overpass, nearly killing a woman? No, that's not true: This story appears to be based on a 2014 incident that occurred along Interstate 80 in Pennsylvania. In that case the perpetrators throwing rocks were teenage boys from Pennsylvania,…

Did Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg make remarks about how racism went into design choices after the Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed in Baltimore on March 26, 2024? No, that's not true: The video clip in a social media post dates back to a November 9, 2021, White House daily briefing. Buttigieg's 2021 remarks were a response to a direct question…

Is the U.S. government providing $5,000 to each illegal migrant and to all Americans? No, neither element of the claim is true: An immigration policy think tank contacted by Lead Stories said these claims are a "false rumor" that has been circulating since December 2023. Immigrants who enter the country illegally generally are not eligible for most federal benefits or…

Do undocumented immigrants in the United States not pay taxes? No, that's not true: The claim made by Elon Musk on X that "illegals in America" do not pay taxes is "absolutely false," the deputy director of the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a nonpartisan think tank, told Lead Stories. "Undocumented immigrants pay a range of taxes at every…