October 15, 2019

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Courts Block Public Charge Rule
Federal judges have issued five preliminary injunctions, including nationwide injunctions from courts in New York, Washington, and Maryland, blocking any implementation of the Trump administration’s “public charge” regulations, which were scheduled to be implemented today, October 15. The orders, issued by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, find, in part, that the plaintiffs are likely to prevail at trial. A third court arrived at similar legal findings but limited the scope of its injunction. See statement from the National Immigration Law Center and CLASP.

Judge blocks Trump restrictions on immigrant benefits (VT Digger, October 14, 2019)
The Trump administration's federal rule that would change how immigrants’ use of public benefits (such as SNAP) are factored into green card applications has been halted. The proposed rule change has led to confusion and a lawsuit filed by Vermont, Connecticut, New York state, and New York City. The lawsuit noted “[f]ear and confusion surrounding the Final Rule will likely result in refugees, as well as their non-refugee family members, disenrolling in critical benefits that help them successfully integrate.” Anore Horton, of Hunger Free Vermont, said the rule was designed to “scare people into dropping all their benefit programs.”

Lawsuits around US seek to block Trump’s public charge rule (PBS, October 8, 2019)
Lawsuits were filed, from New York to California, to prevent the “public charge” rule from going into effect on October 15. “I’ve litigated against federal and state agencies over the years and I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Liz Schott of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. “It’s a tremendously broad set of players reflecting the huge significance and impact of the rule.” The rule change outraged immigrants and advocates, who say it has had a chilling effect on immigrants who are now scared to apply for the assistance they’re eligible to get for themselves or their relatives.

Confusion Over New Rules Leads Many to Ditch Public Assistance (Dallas Observer, October 9, 2019)
Fear, misinformation, and rumors over the federal rule changing qualifications for “public charge” and including SNAP and other federal programs in those qualifications are causing people to give up SNAP and other programs needlessly. Immigrant families are taking family members, even those with U.S. citizenship, off SNAP and Medicaid, according to Cheasty Anderson, senior policy associate for the Children’s Defense Fund – Texas. Anderson and other advocates are reaching out to families to allay fears, but immigrant assistance organizations are still hearing from clients with concerns.

Proposed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Rule on Standard Utility Allowances (SUAs)

A new proposal could cut $4.5 billion in SNAP funding, leaving some ‘feeling more helpless than ever’ (WPTV, October 4, 2019)
A new proposal to change the way “Standard Utility Allowance” in SNAP is calculated could cut more than $4.5 billion in SNAP funding. “What we do know now is that it will affect how much people get in SNAP benefits,” said Kimberly LoVano, director of advocacy and public education for the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. This is the third SNAP proposed rule in the past 12 months, “so for a lot of the people that we serve, they keep hearing that there’s another change to SNAP and another change to benefits, and they’re not quite sure how it will impact them.” LoVano also said that any changes will affect the food bank, as SNAP provides nine meals for every one the food bank provides.

Food stamps don’t go far enough for many RI families (NBC 10, October 10, 2019)
A report from the Rhode Island Community Food Bank and Brown University’s Hassenfield Child Health Innovation Institute found that for a majority of the state’s 167,000 residents receiving SNAP, benefits are gone within two weeks. Advocates say proposed changes to the program could make matters worse. The proposed rule to change the way utility costs are calculated could mean less nutrition assistance for Rhode Island and other cold weather states. The state’s Department of Human Services will be submitting an objection to the proposed rule.

SNAP Eligibility Proposed Rule

Maryland delegation asks USDA to reconsider SNAP changes (The Sentinel, October 5, 2019)
Maryland’s Congressional delegation sent a letter on September 17 to USDA in opposition to the proposed rule change that would tighten SNAP eligibility. Michael J. Wilson, director of Maryland Hunger Solutions, thanked the delegation’s response to the rule. “Not only is the proposed rule an attempt to get around Congress; it will force tens of thousands of Marylanders into a more bureaucratic process, cost the state more time and money, and thousands of our neighbors will be delayed [in receiving] and possibly denied benefits,” said Wilson. “This change is unnecessary. We need to keep moving forward and making sure that we provide food and nutrition assistance for folks who are seniors, for the kids in school and for families all across the state.”

Don’t take food from hungry kids (WV Gazette Mail, October 5, 2019)
West Virginia leads the nation, and has done so for five consecutive years, in school breakfast participation, according to FRAC. However, the Trump administration’s proposed changes to SNAP eligibility could undo the progress the state has made in feeding children, writes Rick Wilson of the American Friends Service Committee, in this op-ed. Changing SNAP eligibility also will change eligibility for free school meals, and FRAC estimates that because of the SNAP change, 500,000 children would lose access to those meals. The change also would cut off millions from SNAP benefits.

Attacks on SNAP are mean-spirited (Pennlive.com, October 5, 2019)
In Pennsylvania, 700,000 children, 690,000 people with disabilities, and 185,000 older adults rely on SNAP, and the Trump administration is jeopardizing access to the program for more than 120,000 of the state’s households, or 200,000 people. The administration is changing an eligibility policy that makes the program available to more low-income families and individuals who would otherwise go hungry. “Forcing already-struggling families to choose between putting food on their table or covering child care, rent, or other basic needs is unconscionable, and [the Department of Human Services (DHS)] vehemently opposes this change,” writes Pennsylvania DHS Secretary Teresa Miller in this op-ed. The rule change also could equate to a loss of $200–$250 million a year for Pennsylvania retailers.

Afterschool Meals

Lamoille schools make moves to fill hunger gap (Stowe Today, October 3, 2019)
Vermont’s Lamoille North school district has begun offering afterschool meals through the Child and Adult Care Food Program. “We anticipate feeding around 500 students, roughly 28 percent of our student population,” said Karyl Kent, the district’s director of nutritional services. “For some students experiencing food insecurity at home, this may be their last meal of the day.” The meals are available to all students, and students do not have to be participating in an afterschool activity to receive the meals.

Alfond Youth Center introduced food program (Colby Echo News, October 9, 2019)
The Alfond Youth Center in Waterville, Maine, which houses a YMCA and a Boys & Girls Club, has started serving afterschool meals to children through the Child and Adult Care Food Program. “With almost 60 percent of youth in the Waterville area eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, it just makes sense that we would extend meal opportunities to our youth in a safe and nourishing environment, like our licensed After School Program,” said Jared McCannell, grants manager for the center. He noted that a child told staff that the meal they receive at the center is the last hot meal they get for the week until lunch on Monday.

School Meals

School meals: a reflection of growing poverty in LA (Calmatters.org, October 8, 2019)
About 80 percent of students in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) receive free or reduced-price school meals, the largest distribution in California, and the number is rising. According to FRAC, 72.4 percent (405,338) of LAUSD students were eligible for free or reduced-price meals in 2015–2016. “Most of our schools are in the Community Eligibility Program, where all students get all meals without charge,” said Monica Garcia, a member of the LAUSD School Board. LAUSD also has implemented Breakfast in the Classroom, and offers afterschool meals. “We currently serve 71,000 late meals a day, and we expect the number to increase,” said LAUSD spokeswoman Ellen Morgan.

“Breakfast After the Bell” in Finley (NBC Right Now, October 7, 2019)
A Washington State law requires all schools with at least 70 percent of students qualifying for free or reduced-price school meals to offer Breakfast After the Bell. Finley School District served 6,369 breakfasts to students in September 2018; since offering Breakfast After the Bell, the district nearly doubled the number of meals served to 11,276 in September 2019. A growing body of research shows that hungry students have poorer cognitive function and less academic success, according to FRAC.

School Meals Debt

Area school districts face school meal debt (Statesman, October 7, 2019)
Texas passed the “No Shaming” law in June 2017. The law requires that school districts take on school meal debt instead of shaming students with overdue school meal accounts. Schools have been encouraging eligible families with outstanding meal debt to apply for free or reduced-price school meals. “The fact that we continue to feed these students, there is a lot of good that comes from it: test scores, disciplinary scores, we don’t believe that … (meal shaming) serves a good purpose,” said Matt Buck, child nutrition director for Amarillo Independent School District (ISD). “(The free or reduced meal program is) usually the direction that we try to go,” said Andy Nies, assistant superintendent for River Road ISD. “If it’s getting an application in their hand to help them pay, then we are going to do that.”

College Student Hunger

CA Gov. Gavin Newsom signs AB 1278 addressing student needs (Daily Californian, October 7, 2019)
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill (AB 1278) into law, which aims to ensure all California public universities provide students with direct access to CalFresh (the state’s name for SNAP) and other benefit programs. According to a University of California (UC) study, 44 percent of undergraduates, and 26 percent of graduates, in the UC system reported experiencing food insecurity. “It’s unacceptable that so many college students are struggling to find food and shelter,” said Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-San Fernando Valley), author of the bill. “Our students should be focused on their studies, not worry about where they are going to sleep or find their next meal.”

Widespread College Hunger Jolts Food Banks Into Action (Food Bank News, October 8, 2019)
According to the largest and most recent assessment of college student hunger, nearly half (45 percent) of college students surveyed reported being food insecure; at the same time, 12 percent of U.S. households reported food insecurity. Nearly 86,000 students in 24 states participated in the survey. The high numbers of food-insecure students are pushing food banks into new partnerships with college campuses.

Economic Inequality

The Middle-Class Crunch: A Look at 4 Family Budgets (The New York Times, October 3, 2019)
Due to the rising costs of housing, health care, and education, middle-class families are working longer and carrying greater financial risks than past generations. Pensions have been replaced by 401(k) plans and comprehensive health care has turned into high-deductible health plans, shifting responsibility to workers and forcing them to deal with more threats to their financial well-being. Even families with two paychecks are struggling with high housing, health care, and college costs, with American households spending more of their budget on housing than on food. “Young families with kids are really getting slammed on all sides,” said Jenny Schuetz, a Brookings Institution fellow studying housing policy. “They are more likely to have some student debt, and child care has gotten more expensive.”

From FRAC Chat

5 Grandparents Tell FRAC and Generations United How the Federal Nutrition Programs Help Feed Grandfamilies (FRAC Chat, October 11, 2019)
As the number of grandfamilies continues to rise, data on the state of grandfamilies is growing, including alarming data pointing to grandfamilies’ vulnerability to poverty and hunger. To elevate the unique challenges grandfamilies face — and to highlight the importance of the federal nutrition programs to addressing those challenges — FRAC, in collaboration with Generations United, collected and shared real-life narratives of grandparents raising grandchildren.