Hunger Alert – June 2007
1. Call Assembly and Senate to Promote Healthy Schools
2. Support a Strong Farm Bill – Improve Food Stamps, Reform Farm Aid
3. Governor Creates a Food Policy Council
4. NY Expands Access to Food Stamps
5. Spitzer Administration Moves Ahead on Universal Health Care; Michael Moore Movie
6. Urge Spitzer to Sign into Law Welfare Bill on Sustainable Wages and Nontraditional jobs.
7. Urge Legislature to Pass Various Welfare Reform Bills
8. Annual Membership Meeting Sept. 24; 25th Anniversary Event NYC this fall
1. Call Assembly and Senate to Promote Healthy Schools
Governor Spitzer and legislative leaders have agreed that they want to improve nutrition for school children through a Healthy Schools Act. The bill would expand on reforms Hunger Action helped passed more than a decade ago, such as banning junk food. It would also improve nutritional standards for school meals. But there are still points of disagreement. The Senate is particularly opposed to the school breakfast expansion as an “unfunded mandate,” though the Assembly is proposing an additional $40 million in state funds for such programs. School breakfast is now required in elementary schools and low-income middle and high schools that offer lunch, though schools can receive a waiver.
Call the chairs of the Education Committee – Senator Saland (518 455-2411) and Assemblymember Cathy Nolan (518 455-4841) – and say: “Thank you for passing the Healthy Schools Act. We hope you will expand the school breakfast mandate. We also support more funding to help schools purchase locally grown food.”
2. Support a Strong Farm Bill – Improve Food Stamps, Reform Farm Aid
The House Agriculture Subcommittee is expected to mark up the nutrition title of the Farm Bill on June 14, with the full House Agriculture Committee and Senate Agriculture Committee following in June. On the food stamp side, The McGovern/Emerson bill, H.R. 2129, currently with 88 cosponsors, would make $20 billion in new five-year investments in nutrition programs by improving benefit levels, expanding eligibility, and improving access. It provides families with greater access to an adequate diet by raising the food stamp benefit levels. H.R. 2129 also bolsters the emergency food assistance system and overall, offers the broadest relief introduced to date.
Make three calls – one to your Representative and two to your Senators. Call 800-965-4298. Ask the Capitol Switchboard operator to connect you to your Member of Congress’ office. Ask your member of Congress to reform the farm bill to better meet the needs of hungry and poor people. With changes in commodity payment programs, the farm bill can: provide more targeted and equitable support for U.S. farmers; strengthen communities in rural America; provide an adequate, nutritious diet for hungry people in this country; make U.S. food aid more effective and efficient and, remove obstacles to poor farmers in developing countries working to earn their way out of poverty.
For more info, see www.frac.org (Food Research and Action Center) or www.bread.org (for Bread for the World). FRAC’s national call-in days are until June 15th.
3. Governor Creates a Food Policy Council
On May 20, Gov. Spitzer issued an Executive Order to create a New York State Food Policy Council in response to efforts by Hunger Action and many others. The Council will coordinate efforts by the various state agencies to end hunger, promote improved nutrition and support local farmers. Dozens of programs, located in numerous agencies at the federal, State and local level, attempt to reduce hunger, strengthen local agriculture, and reduce nutrition and health problems. The programs would benefit from increased coordination pursuant to comprehensive food policy planning. The Council would also provide government agency representatives with the opportunity to meet and interact with citizens and each other on food and agricultural policy. The Council would help create win-win situations, such as helping local farmers sell to schools and restaurants so consumers have better access to healthy, fresh fruits and vegetables.
4. NY Expands Access to Food Stamps
ODTA Commissioner David Hansell recently announced an initiative to help more working families get food stamps (though some of the changes need a federal waiver). Families with an adult working thirty hours per week, or households with two adults who each work at least twenty hours per week, would be offered a simplified application process. Eligible applicants will bypass the face-to-face interview at social services offices, will not be subject to finger imaging, and will face less demanding reporting requirements. In addition, resource limits will be waived for all food stamp recipients in New York State, allowing them to save for important family needs without jeopardizing their food stamp benefits.
Hunger Action also applauded the state’s efforts to convince Congress to raise food stamp benefits to a more reasonable level. The Food Stamp benefit level, at $1.16 per person, per meal in New York, is inadequate to support a proper diet. Hunger Action also wants the state to make it easier for families to get food stamps in emergency situations by going back to the next day after application issuance rule for expedited food stamps that existed during the tenure of Governor Cuomo.
5. Spitzer Administration Moves Ahead on Universal Health Care; Michael Moore Movie
The State Health Dept. has finished drafting a Request for Proposal for the $200,000 in health care studies funded in the recent state budget; they hope to finish “internal clearance” within the next month. Many observers expect the Lewin group to be picked due to its national reputation plus recent work in NY. The studies will price out a single payer / Medicare for All type system. It appears however that many in the Spitzer administration still want to focus short term on expansion of existing state programs rather than a complete overhaul. Hunger Action has developed a statement of principles on universal health care reform.
Michael Moore’s new movie, SICKO, premiers on Friday June 29th. While the movie does not directly promote single payer, it does make clear that the elimination of our system of private health insurance has to be the starting point on any movement to universal health care. Moore is working nationally with groups like Physicians for a National Health Program and the Nurses Association to use the movie as a recruitment tool. Hunger Action has developed a flyer about the state effort for universal health care for distribution at local events. Groups will also be promoting HR 676, the Medicare for All bill in Congress. Contact dunleamark@aol.com for a copy of the flyer and/or statement of principles.
6. Urge Spitzer to Sign into Law Welfare Bill on Sustainable Wages and Nontraditional jobs.
Both houses of the State Legislature have passed legislation to require that local social services district plans for public assistance employment programs emphasize training for sustainable wage jobs and promote understanding of nontraditional employment opportunities for participants. We now need the Governor to sign it. A sample letter is attached (also included are sample memos of support for item 7 below). In the rush to reduce welfare rolls under federal welfare reform, many welfare recipients have been placed in low-paying jobs. In particular, initial studies of women moving from welfare to work indicate that the vast majority of women move into jobs that do not lift them and their children out of poverty. These jobs are typically in industries, such as food service and home health care, which are traditionally populated by women workers. Bill # S.3201/A.3366.
7. Urge Legislature to Pass Various Welfare Reform Bills
We are at a critical stage in the legislative process and need your assistance in moving some bills that are very important to public assistance recipients. Attached are a series of memos on: A7391 - Basic Education Bill; A7990 – Comprehensive Assessments and Development Of Career Plans; and A7551 – Eliminate the 185% of Standard of Need Income Cap. We hope you will copy and/or modify these memos to send to the key legislators and staff listed below. Finally, please email Jill Stevens from Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (jstevens@fpwa.org) indicating if you took these actions so we can monitor the effectiveness of this type of advocacy. Don’t hesitate to call Jill at 212-801-1311 with any questions.
Elaine Fernandez fernane@assembly.state.ny.us; Michelle DiBacco dibacco@senate.state.ny.us; Tom Andriola: andriot@assembly.state.ny.us; Sherry Mayer: mayer@senate.state.ny.us; Michael Avela: avela@senate.state.ny.us ; Chris Maitland maitlac@assembly.state.ny.us; Francis McKearin mckearin@senate.state.ny.uss; Senator Montgomery montegome@senate.state.ny.us; Senator Kruger kruger@senate.state.ny.us; Senator Smith masmith@senate.state.ny.us; Senator Bruno bruno@senate.state.ny.us; Assembly Member Wright wrightk@assembly.state.ny.us
8. Annual Membership Meeting Sept. 24; 25th Anniversary Event NYC this fall
Hunger Action will hold its annual membership meeting on Monday, Sept. 24th, location to be determined. NYC will also host an event observing our 25th anniversary in mid-October.
