Low-Income Marylanders Face Food Assistance Cut in November

774,000 low-income people in Maryland will see a cut in their food assistance benefits this fall, when a temporary boost to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) is set to expire, according to new data released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). A new report from the Washington-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analyses the impacts.

SNAP benefits will average less than $1.40 per person per meal after the cut. All of the 47 million Americans, including 22 million children, who receive SNAP, known as the Food Supplement Program (FSP) in Maryland. will experience the reductions.


To strengthen the economy and ease hardship resulting from the Great Recession, Congress approved a modest boost in benefits to SNAP recipients as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The increase expires on October 31. For a family of three, that cut will amount to $29 a month — $319 for the remaining 11 months of the fiscal year.

This small increase in Supplemental Nutrition Program benefits has helped 774,000 struggling families in Maryland stay afloat during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. For many of these families, this modest assistance is providing a lifeline to those who are struggling to find work, or are working at jobs that do not pay them enough to put food on the table.

In addition to helping to feed hungry families, SNAP is one of the fastest, most effective ways to stimulate a struggling economy.  Every $1 increase in SNAP benefits generates about $1.70 in economic activity.

The across-the-board cuts scheduled for November will reduce the program nationally by $5 billion in fiscal year 2014 alone. Cuts of that magnitude will have a significant impact on low-income families.

SNAP has never before experienced a reduction in benefits that impacts all participants, including 22 million children nationwide. Given the fact that benefits are already inadequate for many families, these cuts will be particularly painful.

On top of these across-the-board cuts to the program, the U.S. House of Representatives recently defeated legislation that would have cut $20 billion from SNAP, eliminating food assistance for nearly two million people. This would leave many families and their children without assistance to put food on the table when they need it most.

The House is considering and could vote on even deeper cuts to the program in the coming weeks.

The Supplemental Nutrition Program has been a powerful tool in helping to keep families out of poverty. The majority of recipients who are able to work, do so. And for those who can’t or are temporarily unable to find a job, SNAP has helped to give them a leg up. Now is not the time to further reduce this already modest assistance to these struggling families.


In Maryland, the benefit cut through October 2014 will total $82 million, slowing economic growth by reducing overall consumption. Nationally, the cut will total roughly $5 billion in federal fiscal year 2014 and an additional $6 billion across fiscal years 2015 and 2016.

More information about Maryland’s SNAP program is here. Maryland Hunger Solutions also provides a wealth of information about food insecurity in our state, and the successful programs that are fighting hunger.

Hunger solutions in Annapolis and Washington

Image: wpclipart.com

On Thursday, March 21, Maryland Hunger Solutions hosted a legislative breakfast to discuss food policy in Maryland. In addition to eating breakfast, there are other things we should do to fight hunger.

In spite of Maryland's overall wealth, hunger, homelessness and poverty remain problems here. One in 10 people are poor. Based on official USDA statistics, one in 8 Maryland households cannot afford adequate food at some point during the year (up from one in 12 just a few years ago). 50,000 Marylanders are homeless at some point each year.

In our budgeting and public policy, Maryland’s leaders have done a lot to improve these things. They have respected the social safety net while implementing a balanced approach to balancing the budget. They expanded Medicaid and moved forward to implement the Affordable Care Act and state health exchange. They are moving forward on a five-year program to provide in-class breakfasts at all eligible schools.

The situation in most other states around the country is actually much worse – both in terms of the rates of hunger, poverty and homelessness, and the commitment of the political leadership. Still, in the wealthiest state in America, we can and should do better.

On the federal level, things have gone haywire. The forces of greed and fear are telling us that people should not feel “entitled” to food, shelter, and medical care. These things ought to be efficiently allocated by market forces on the basis of ability to pay. The savings should be used to reduce taxes on investment earnings and corporate profits, according to some.

Our national leaders DO need to reform the nation’s finances to bring down the long-term budget deficit. We should support a “Grand Bargain” to accomplish these goals. But not everything should be on the table. Cuts to “Domestic Discretionary Expenditures” that affect Food Stamps, WIC, school meals, and other vital safety net food programs must not be negotiable. Cutting food for the hungry should not be part of a partisan political deal.

Our jobs as advocates include:

1. Thank Governor O’Malley and our legislators for preserving and enhancing key food and health efforts here in Maryland.
2. Advocate for structural solutions to hunger and poverty to prevent problems in the future. Things like minimum wage and paid sick day policies really are hunger solutions. Ultimately, so are funding for public schools and promoting access to higher education and job skill training.
3. Tell our representatives in Congress to protect food, housing and healthcare for low-income Americans as they come to a sane agreement to reduce future deficits.

Serving MD’s Children: Support Meals for Achievement

Today we have another guest blog, this time from Lisa Klingenmeier at Maryland Hunger Solutions.

Even as the national economy slowly improves, many Maryland families still struggle to make ends meet. Maryland has the highest median household income in the country, yet statewide 14.8 percent of households had difficulty affording enough food to feed their family during the first 6 months of 2012. From December of 2011 to December of 2012, every county in Maryland had an increase in enrollment in the Food Supplement Program (known nationally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and formerly known as Food Stamps). At the same time, the USDA estimates that food costs will rise between 3 and 4 percent in 2013.  Reliable sources of healthy meals, through programs like the School Breakfast Program, are more important than ever.

Photo taken at Meade Middle School, an MMFA School

Maryland Meals for Achievement (MMFA) allows participating schools to provide breakfast free to all students in the classroom, thereby increasing breakfast participation, while reducing stigma and other barriers to participation.  The program addresses the hunger and nutritional needs of students in schools where at least 40 percent of students are eligible for free and reduced-price meals. The benefits of MMFA are clear – higher school breakfast participation has a positive impact on the educational performance, health, and behavior of Maryland’s children.

Unfortunately, during the 2012-2013 school year, only 271 schools of the 813 schools that are eligible for MMFA are actually participating because of budget limitations. As more families are struggling to make ends meet and put adequate food on their table, it is essential that eligible schools receive the resources they need to provide free school breakfast to all of their students through the MMFA program.

In his FY2014 budget proposal, Governor Martin O’Malley included an additional $1.8 million dollars in the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) – Aid to Education budget for MMFA, which would provide in-classroom breakfast to 57,000 more vulnerable children.

Maryland Meals for Achievement is only part of a statewide investment by community partners to help combat childhood hunger, but it is an important, proven, and cost-effective one.  As many Maryland families continue to struggle with food insecurity, Maryland Hunger Solutions and MBTPI strongly support MSDE’s Aid to Education budget as set by the Administration, including the additional funding for the Maryland Meals for Achievement program.

Food stamp challenge: Day 7

Last night I was hungry, but I was worried about running out of bread. I found myself eating peanut butter out of the jar with a spoon - something I have not done before as an adult.
 

Nevertheless, I will successfully complete the Maryland Food Stamp Challenge today (with one cheat for a family event Saturday).

For the past seven days, about 100 of us around Maryland have been eating only what we can buy for $30 for the whole week. That's the  typical benefit, for one person for one week, in the food stamp program (now called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP). The Food Stamp Challenge is sponsored by our good friends at Maryland Hunger Solutions.

Breakfast today: Oatmeal. My last banana for my mid-morning snack.

Lunch - PB&J and a hard-boiled egg.

Dinner: Mac and cheese with tuna and green beans.

Emergency snack: peanut butter and brown rice. My idea is if I get hungry between meals, I'll mash up my leftover rice with my leftover peanut butter. It might be better than I think.

So here is the big difference between me and most real food stamp recipients. I know that after my seven days of challenge, I will go back my normal, (overly) ample, (reasonably) nutritious eating habits.

Most food stamp recipients do not know when or if their economic circumstances will improve to the extent that they can buy food that is enough and that provides reasonable nutrition, variety and convenience.

Today, I'm thinking about all the other issues that many real food stamp recipients face and I do not. (Of course, I'm also thinking about what I'll eat tomorrow when I'm off of food stamps).

The most important and urgent is the availability of jobs that allow a worker to support themselves and their children. With more jobs that pay living wages, not so many Marylanders would depend on food stamps. We should increase the minimum wage to catch up with the cost of living. We should require employers to provide some level of  paid sick leave. We should assure that young people and adults have access to the education and training they will need to qualify for the decent paying jobs of the 21st century.

What I missed most in my food stamp challenge week were salads, fresh vegetables, and fruits. Protein was my first priority, and after that carbs were the cheapest items. Fruit and vegetables are expensive. I could only afford two cans of veggies and six bananas.

But, I had access to a good grocery store, where at least I could buy the canned veggies at a reasonable price. What about food stamp recipients stuck in urban "food desserts" without access to reliable transportation. We should promote access to nutritional food choices in low-income areas, and we should increase the SNAP benefit to allow recipients to buy well-balanced selection of foods. We MUST protect federal funding for existing nutrition programs.

Finally, SNAP is part of a network of programs that help with food needs, also including the WIC program and school breakfast and lunch programs. Even with all this help, one of every six Maryland families has problems affording enough food. Families also need housing, healthcare, and transportation. These strands in the safety net are currently very weak as well. We need to strengthen programs to help low-income renters, expand health coverage, promote primary and preventive care, and make public transportation more convenient and reliable.

Eating peanut butter from a spoon is not really a hardship. People who are stuck with low-incomes and inadequate supports have real problems. But they are capable of becoming independent and productive with a little help. We need to get serious about helping.