HH2008

NEW YORK CITY NEWS

New York State is #1 in Economic Inequality

The Empire State leads the country in economic inequality, according to data from the 2007 American Community Survey, released by the U.S. Census Bureau in August. According to the survey, in 2007 the top 20% of wealthy New Yorkers earned 53.2% of the state’s wealth, producing economic inequality to rival Sri Lanka and Mexico. New York City data further shows that Mayor Bloomberg’s highly-publicized anti-poverty initiatives have failed to deliver, as the number of New Yorkers living in poverty has grown from 1.491 million when Bloomberg took office in 2002, to 1.5 million in 2007. “These federal numbers are the clearest indication yet that Mayor Bloomberg’s anti-poverty strategy – comprised mostly of small-scale, under-funded pilot programs – is failing to make a significant dent in the City’s massive poverty and hunger,” said NYCCAH Executive Director Joel Berg. “I hope this new data is a wake up call for all our elected officials to convince them that we must devote real resources to our anti-poverty efforts.”

Governor Paterson Slashes Anti-Hunger Funding; Avoids Tax Cuts for Wealthiest New Yorkers

Governor Paterson again flexed his fiscal muscle at the expense of the state’s most vulnerable residents by cutting funding by 6% for the Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program (HPNAP) the main source of State funding for charitable food pantries, soup kitchens, and food banks. Paterson joined the State Senate in rejecting a State Assembly plan that would have prevented funding cuts by slightly increasing the income tax rate on New Yorkers who make over $1 million a year. The recent cuts follow a 16% cut in HPNAP funds in April, which was authorized by both Paterson and the state legislature, despite continuing reports of alarmingly high demand and desperate shortages of food at soup kitchens and food pantries across the state. Said Natasha, a New York City pantry customer who recently waited in line for two hours for a bag of packaged food, “the Governor should speak to the people who go through this.” When asked to comment on Governor Paterson’s recent budget decisions, Mayor Bloomberg stated that the city had been “spared any real cuts.”

CSA Members Connect to Source at Farm at Miller’s Crossing

Throughout the summer, The New York City Coalition Against Hunger has been working to bring fresh produce to members of Long Island City through the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. CSA allows members to purchase farm shares that are then delivered in weekly boxes of fresh, local produce. On Friday, August 22, members of the Long Island City Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program were given a chance to see the fields and meet the farmers that grow the fruits and vegetables in their weekly produce delivery. Chris Cashen and Katie Smith, owners and operators of the Farm at Miller’s Crossing in Hudson, NY, welcomed CSA members who spent the day learning about hay production, helping bag onions for sale at a nearby farmers market, and picking apples from the farm’s trees. Cashen emphasized the mutual benefit of CSAs and thanked members for their participation in the program. “Because members pay up front and are open to a wide array of seasonal produce, we are able to offer them a very affordable way to buy and eat organic produce,” said Cashen. NYCCAH and CSA program partners have further ensured the accessibility of local produce by offering low-income members scholarships as well as the option of purchasing shares with food stamps or reduced bi-weekly payments.

STATE AND NATIONAL ROUNDUP

Food Stamps Insufficient to Maintain Healthy Diet

Even the most basic nutritious food plan remains out of reach for food stamp recipients, according to a recent report from the Children’s Sentinel Nutrition Assessment Program (C-SNAP). The results of the study, “Coming up Short: High Food Costs Outstrip Food Stamp Benefits,” were based upon the USDA’s Thrifty Food Plan (TFP): a standard assortment of food items that the USDA uses to determine maximum food stamp allotment. The C-SNAP report found that families in Boston would have to spend an additional $2250 per year to purchase the TFP. Access was another obstacle to these families obtaining nutritious food: researchers were unable to find 27% of the items that make up the TFP – predominantly the healthier options like whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, and low-fat milk and cheese – in the neighborhoods surveyed in the report.

Congress is currently debating a second economic stimulus package that could provide effective, nationwide relief for low-income families who cannot currently afford an adequate diet. Please contact Alexandra Yannias at (212) 825-0028, ext. 212 for more information about the Bill or about how to effectively lobby your representatives.

Anti-Hunger Advocates Call for Immediate Government Action to End Child Hunger

Seventy years after the Great Depression, children in the United States still suffer from food insecurity and hunger, despite the fact that the United States has more than enough resources to end child hunger once and for all. President of the Children’s Defense Fund, Marian Wright Edelman recently emphasized the need to address child hunger as a systemic problem, fueled by an economy in crisis, funding cutbacks and changes in national policy. While Edelman credited the Food Stamp and Women, Infants and Children (WIC) programs with providing food for millions of American children, these programs have remained woefully under-funded even as the current administration has proposed cuts in Food Stamp eligibility for three years in a row. NYCCAH Executive Director Joel Berg joined with policy analyst Tom Freedman to propose a six-point plan to end childhood hunger by 2012, arguing for increased government accountability, establishment of a federal living wage, and improved cooperation between government and non-profits. These policies offer hope for a future in which government resources are used to protect the most vulnerable Americans. Says Edelman, “more than 60 years ago, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt pledged that the people of our nation would be free from want. Surely we can do that when it comes to child nutrition.”

	New York State is #1 in Economic Inequality
	The Empire State leads the country in economic inequality, according to data from the 2007 American Community Survey, released by the U.S. Census Bureau in August. According to the survey, in 2007 the top 20% of wealthy New Yorkers earned 53.2% of the state’s wealth, producing economic inequality to rival Sri Lanka and Mexico. New York City data further shows that Mayor Bloomberg’s highly-publicized anti-poverty initiatives have failed to deliver, as the number of New Yorkers living in poverty has grown from 1.491 million when Bloomberg took office in 2002, to 1.5 million in 2007. “These federal numbers are the clearest indication yet that Mayor Bloomberg’s anti-poverty strategy – comprised mostly of small-scale, under-funded pilot programs – is failing to make a significant dent in the City’s massive poverty and hunger,” said NYCCAH Executive Director Joel Berg. “I hope this new data is a wake up call for all our elected officials to convince them that we must devote real resources to our anti-poverty efforts.”
	Governor Paterson Slashes Anti-Hunger Funding; Avoids Tax Cuts for Wealthiest New Yorkers
	Governor Paterson again flexed his fiscal muscle at the expense of the state’s most vulnerable residents by cutting funding by 6% for the Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program (HPNAP) the main source of State funding for charitable food pantries, soup kitchens, and food banks. Paterson joined the State Senate in rejecting a State Assembly plan that would have prevented funding cuts by slightly increasing the income tax rate on New Yorkers who make over $1 million a year. The recent cuts follow a 16% cut in HPNAP funds in April, which was authorized by both Paterson and the state legislature, despite continuing reports of alarmingly high demand and desperate shortages of food at soup kitchens and food pantries across the state. Said Natasha, a New York City pantry customer who recently waited in line for two hours for a bag of packaged food, “the Governor should speak to the people who go through this.” When asked to comment on Governor Paterson’s recent budget decisions, Mayor Bloomberg stated that the city had been “spared any real cuts.”
	CSA Members Connect to Source at Farm at Miller’s Crossing
	Throughout the summer, The New York City Coalition Against Hunger has been working to bring fresh produce to members of Long Island City through the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. CSA allows members to purchase farm shares that are then delivered in weekly boxes of fresh, local produce. On Friday, August 22, members of the Long Island City Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program were given a chance to see the fields and meet the farmers that grow the fruits and vegetables in their weekly produce delivery. Chris Cashen and Katie Smith, owners and operators of the Farm at Miller’s Crossing in Hudson, NY, welcomed CSA members who spent the day learning about hay production, helping bag onions for sale at a nearby farmers market, and picking apples from the farm’s trees. Cashen emphasized the mutual benefit of CSAs and thanked members for their participation in the program. “Because members pay up front and are open to a wide array of seasonal produce, we are able to offer them a very affordable way to buy and eat organic produce,” said Cashen. NYCCAH and CSA program partners have further ensured the accessibility of local produce by offering low-income members scholarships as well as the option of purchasing shares with food stamps or reduced bi-weekly payments.

		Food Stamps Insufficient to Maintain Healthy Diet
		Even the most basic nutritious food plan remains out of reach for food stamp recipients, according to a recent report from the Children’s Sentinel Nutrition Assessment Program (C-SNAP). The results of the study, “Coming up Short: High Food Costs Outstrip Food Stamp Benefits,” were based upon the USDA’s Thrifty Food Plan (TFP): a standard assortment of food items that the USDA uses to determine maximum food stamp allotment. The C-SNAP report found that families in Boston would have to spend an additional $2250 per year to purchase the TFP. Access was another obstacle to these families obtaining nutritious food: researchers were unable to find 27% of the items that make up the TFP – predominantly the healthier options like whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, and low-fat milk and cheese – in the neighborhoods surveyed in the report. Congress is currently debating a second economic stimulus package that could provide effective, nationwide relief for low-income families who cannot currently afford an adequate diet. Please contact Alexandra Yannias at (212) 825-0028, ext. 212 for more information about the Bill or about how to effectively lobby your representatives.
		Anti-Hunger Advocates Call for Immediate Government Action to End Child Hunger
		Seventy years after the Great Depression, children in the United States still suffer from food insecurity and hunger, despite the fact that the United States has more than enough resources to end child hunger once and for all. President of the Children’s Defense Fund, Marian Wright Edelman recently emphasized the need to address child hunger as a systemic problem, fueled by an economy in crisis, funding cutbacks and changes in national policy. While Edelman credited the Food Stamp and Women, Infants and Children (WIC) programs with providing food for millions of American children, these programs have remained woefully under-funded even as the current administration has proposed cuts in Food Stamp eligibility for three years in a row. NYCCAH Executive Director Joel Berg joined with policy analyst Tom Freedman to propose a six-point plan to end childhood hunger by 2012, arguing for increased government accountability, establishment of a federal living wage, and improved cooperation between government and non-profits. These policies offer hope for a future in which government resources are used to protect the most vulnerable Americans. Says Edelman, “more than 60 years ago, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt pledged that the people of our nation would be free from want. Surely we can do that when it comes to child nutrition.”