Running head: HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 1

Transcription

1 Running head: HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 1 Helping Feed the Hungry Student Tarleton State University

2 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 2 Introduction Food insecurity is a multidimensional concept that has evolved over time. Food insecurity is the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food (Oxford Dictionaries, 2015). Food insecurity has factors in all areas including the micro, mezzo, and macro levels. Millions of people worldwide suffer from hunger and are malnutrition. This condition exists when people lack sustainable physical or economic access to enough safe, nutritious, and socially acceptable food for a healthy and productive life (Food Insecurity, 2015). Food insecurity may be chronic, seasonal, or temporary and it may occur at the household, regional, or national level (Food Insecurity, 2015). In the past, food insecurity was measured through cumulative food supplies and food availability, accessibility, and adequacy (Food Insecurity, 2015). A survey (Coleman-Jensen, Gregory, Singh, 2013) obtained information on food insecurity in households throughout the year of 2013, on behalf of the U.S. Census Bureau through the National Food Insecurity survey conducted each year. Findings of this study showed the indication that 14.3% (17.5 million households) were food insecure, reported food insecurity is significantly higher than the national average for households who are below the poverty line or near. According to the study, they also found households who were headed by single women or men, and those headed by Black or Hispanic individuals, were also more likely to have a higher rate of food insecurity. History Over time history many programs have been constructed to help assist with the issue of food insecurity. One of those programs is The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The history of this program dates back to the late 1930s. In New York on May 16, 1939, Mrs. Mable McFiggan was the first individual to purchase items from a store using food

3 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 3 stamps (Shahin, 2014). On August 31, 1964 President Johnson signed the Food Stamp Act of 1964 as a centerpiece on his war on poverty. Over the next ten years, states and counties added the program to the services that were already in use to help low income individuals and their families to put healthy food on their table (Shahin, 2014). Introduction of Policy/Issue According to a study through the United States Census Bureau, SNAP is the major national income support program to which all low-income and low-resource households, regardless of household characteristics, are eligible (Loveless, 2011). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program offers assistance to millions of families and individuals that are eligible to receive benefits and provides economic benefits to communities. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is the largest program that assists families and individuals when in need of nutrition support. The Food and Nutrition Services work with many different agencies, including state agencies and faith-based organizations, to ensure that when a family or individual needs assistance, they have the correct resources to benefit them (Loveless, 2011). As stated in the last paragraph, SNAP is the largest program that assists families and individuals when they are in need of nutrition support. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is expected to help provide resources to stop food insecurity for individuals that have dealt with food insecurity or need help when it comes to dealing with food insecurity in the home. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits are delivered monthly through electronic debit (EBT) cards that can be used to purchase groceries at over 238,000 authorized retailers nationwide. Almost half of all SNAP members are children, and 82 percent of all SNAP benefits go to vulnerable houses that include a child, elderly person, or disabled person. Federal eligibility for SNAP is limited to those with gross incomes up to 130 percent of the federal

4 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 4 poverty line. Participants must further show a net income of less than or equal to 100 percent of the poverty line and are subject to an asset test (Feeding America, 2015). Adults who are able to work and do things on their own without dependents may only receive three months of benefits during any three year period if they are not working a minimum of 20 hours per week or participating in a training program. The SNAP program is administered by the states which have considerable preference to adjust the program to best meet the needs of their members at the same time, federal oversight ensures that SNAP is accountable to the taxpayer and that benefits are administered accurately (Feeding American 2015). In a study by Mabli and Worthington (2014), they investigated the association between SNAP and child insecurity by using data from a national survey of food insecurity. This study found that children in households who had participated in SNAP for six months experienced improvements in food security. This study concludes children do benefit from SNAP over a length of time (Mabli & Worthington, 2014). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is one of the nation s safety net and nutrition programs. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs is currently providing over 47 million low-income households with the EBT cards to purchase food each month. Eligibility is not restricted to any specific sub-groups of people; therefore, everyone is able to receive benefits if they do meet the requirements (Rosenbaum, 2013). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is not just used by one group of individuals but, in fact, can help everyone that needs the assistance. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs serves a wide range of low-income households including families with children, elderly people, and people with disabilities, Participants include families with adults who work in low-wage jobs, unemployed workers, and people with fixed incomes, such as Social Security. About 72 percent of SNAP recipients live in

5 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 5 households with children; more than one-quarter live in households with seniors or people with disabilities (Rosenbaum, 2013). According to this article, SNAP does meet the needs of individuals and or families who are in need of assistance. Most who receive benefits are children who are in need of nutritional support (Rosenbaum, 2013). The elderly, who may have been out of work for some time, also need help meeting nutritional guidelines. People with disabilities are the other most common group of individuals who use SNAP. This population is affected by SNAP helping them receive nutritious meals they may have not received (Rosenbaum, 2013). These participants can also be affected by having some stress taken off of them. With the assistance of SNAP, some people will know exactly how they are going to buy groceries and not have to worry about where their next meal is going to come from. Families with younger children may not have to worry so much about the cost of food and be able to provide other essential items to their children such as clothes, school supplies, medications that may be needed. This also applies to the disabled, having not to worry about the cost of food and instead being able to go to doctors visits and buy their medication if need be. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program reaches a significant amount of people who are eligible. In 2010 SNAP reached 75 percent of all the individual who were eligible in a typical month, an improvement from the year 2002 when the participation was only at 54 percent, The participation rate among eligible low-income working families rose from 43 percent in 2002 to about 65 percent in 2010 (Rosenbaum, 2013). Necessity of the Policy/Issue Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program address the issue of food insecurity in rural areas including those in Texas. A study conducted by Sharkey and Dean (2011) says that people

6 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 6 who live in rural areas of Texas have to travel further than those who live in urban areas to get to a supermarket or grocery store, which reduces their access to quality foods (Sharkey & Dean, 2011). Households that are at risk for food insecurity or have little food in the home are more likely to consume food that could led to obesity. In Texas SNAP is the program that benefits individuals and families. Cutting benefits in Texas would hurt the rural areas because the resources that an individual could find in an urban areas may not be found in a rural area. A study conducted by Carson and Meub (2013), SNAP has remained one important program for providing families and children with nutritious food. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program also has a multiplicative economic effect on communities, and research shows that every five dollars increase in benefits generates nine dollars of economic activity (Carson & Meub, 201, p. 2). In November 2011, 46.3 million people received SNAP nationwide, rural areas were at 15.6 percent. Also in rural areas SNAP usage was high among single mother families (Carson & Meub, 2013 p. 3). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is an important support for low-income working households (Carson & Meub, 2013, p. 4). Policy Description Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program offers assistance to millions of families and individuals that are eligible to receive benefits and provides economic benefits to communities. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is the largest program that assists families and individuals when in need of nutrition support. Over the past decade bills have been put into place to cut costs of the SNAP program. Policy would make changes to cut the budget of a sufficient amount. These cuts would affect the families and individuals who rely on SNAP to help benefit their lives. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is increasingly the target of

7 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 7 congressional budget cuts, despite the large number of Americans who rely on the program (Carson & Meub, 2013 p. 4). The senate passed a reauthorization bill in 2012 that would cut the benefits by 4.49 billion dollars over a span of ten years. This cut could result in a 90 dollar reduction in monthly benefits that would be provided by SNAP (Carson & Meub, 2013 p. 4). The house committee on Agriculture also developed a reauthorization bill that could cut 16 billion dollars form the SNAP program in ten years. The number of people who would lose SNAP benefits under just one provision of this bill would be between 1.8 million and 3 million dollars (Carson & Meub, 2013 p.4). In January 2014, Farm Bill negotiators released their final Farm Bill proposal, which included 8.6 billion dollars in cuts to SNAP (Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program). One trying to delay SNAP cuts is the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA, H.R.) which included 20 billion dollars to increase SNAP benefits by 14 percent. Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program lifted 4.9 million people out of poverty in 2012 and those included 2.2 million children (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). Over the past two years the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has been cut 20 billion dollars and the money that was founded for SNAP has been founded to other programs. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was ended in 2013 (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). Food-insecure individuals and families make up almost 17 percent of the populations in America. These individuals and families are the Americans that this policy is supposed to benefit. Helping individuals and families in their time of need and assisting them with resources that would benefit them. In contrast, these 17 percent of Americans are the ones who would be negatively affected by a cut in the SNAP budget. The short and long term goals of this policy

8 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 8 would be avoiding budget cuts and loss of benefits that are provided by SNAP for the American families and individuals. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs most important anti-hunger program. It has benefited more than 46 million low-income Americans. With the addition of SNAP to American s income, Americans can afford more nutritionally adequate diet in a typical month (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities). Close to 70 percent of SNAP participants are in families with children; more than one-quarter are in households with seniors or people with disabilities (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities). Texas Legislators On March 3, 2015 the student social work group went to Austin, Texas to the capitol to talk to Texas legislators on the issue of food insecurity. The first member of the house that the student social work group met with was Sara Norman, Legislative Director for Larry Gonzales who is the State Representative for House District 52. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program s budget is provided through federal funding. Therefore the Texas House of Representatives has little control over the funds that can be budgeted to the program (S. Norman, personal communication, March 3, 2015). Again on March 3, 2015 the student social work group met with Jordan Michalik, Legislative Director for Tracy King. King is that State Representative for House District 80. Definitely think that food insecurity is an issue (J. Michalik, personal communication, March 3, 2015). They do city farms and city gardens to keep people more healthy (J. Michalik, personal communication, March 3, 2015). On a state level we could be better a distributing money, identifying those problems. (J. Michalik, personal communication, March 3, 2015). Student Efforts for Food Insecurity

9 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 9 On March 24, 2015 the social work Food Insecurity group led a rally at Tarleton State University. The rally included the 6 members of the Food Insecurity group and several members from the community and facility from Tarleton State University. All speakers provided information about the impact of food insecurity in Stephenville, Erath and surrounding counties. One speaker provided information about the issue of food insecurity on the Tarleton campus. Another speaker spoke on the issue of food insecurity on a macro level and how it affects people on a macro level. The social work group had a Stephenville Police Officer come and speak about the issues he sees on the job. Erath County Meals on Wheels executive director also spoke at the rally to help inform of what they encounter and ways Meals on Wheels is serving the community to end food insecurity. Numerous student from Tarleton State University attend the rally along with members of the community. The student social work group created and provided a petition to be signed before the rally and also during the rally. The petition was gain awareness of the cuts that are being done to the SNAP program. Policy Analysis The goals of this policy are to better the worth of individuals and by accommodating the needs of individuals and families that are in need of resources for food. The number one goal is to help the targeted population receive benefits to will improve quality of life. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program help supplement an individuals or family s income to help buy nutritious food (United States Department of Agriculture: Food and Nutrition Service, 2014). As mentioned in the article, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 2015, SNAP is in the homes of 70 percent with children or in the households with seniors and people with disabilities. A reduction in the budget for SNAP would have an affect on sufficient amount of people in America.

10 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 10 The goals of this policy are legal and justified for the rights of human beings. Everyone who meets the criteria and needs assistance should be allowed the right to receive the resources. Cutting the budget for SNAP, denies the rights to people who survive from the benefits that SNAP offer. Does the policy contribute to positive social relations between that target population and the overall society? Yes it does. The policy as stated before helps those in need of assistance when it deals with food. Having nutritious food can impact your life for the better. Having more energy, having a better attitude when it comes to situations. Helps children progress in school and also benefits their outcome on life. Giving the assistance that is needed to families will benefit not only them but overall society. Are the goals of the policy consistent with the values of professional social work? Social workers pursue social change, particularly with and on behalf of vulnerable and oppressed individuals and groups of people. Social workers social change efforts are focused primarily on issues of poverty, unemployment, discrimination, and other forms of social injustice (National Association of Social Work, 2015). Social workers advocate for the vulnerable population and this case the individuals and families that need assistance with food.

11 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 11 References Coleman-Jenson, A., Gregory, C., & Singh, A. (2014). Household food security in the United States in United States Department of Agriculture: Economic Research Report, 173. Loveless, A. T. (2011). Food stamps/ Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) receipts in the past 12 months for households by state: 2009 and American Community Surveys Brief. Shahin, J. (2014). Commemorating the history of SNAP: Looking back at the Food Stamp Act of Feeding America. (2015). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Retrieved from Retrieved from Mabli, J., Worthington, J. (2014). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participation and child food security. Pediatrics, 133(4), 1-9. Retrieved from Rosenbaum, D. (2013). Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. SNAP is Effective and Efficient. Retrieved from Carson. Meub. (2013). University of New Hampshire Scholars Repository. Recent Data Show Continued Growth in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program use.

12 HELPING FEED THE HUNGRY 12 Sharkey, J. & Dean, W. (2011). Food insecurity, social capital and perceived personal disparity in a predominantly rural region of Texas: An individual level analysis. Social Science and Medicine. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) retrieved from Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. (2015) Policy Basics: Introduction to the SNAP. Retrieved from United States Department of Agriculture: Food and Nutrition Service. (2014). Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Oxford Dictionaries. (2015). Food Insecurity. (2015). Retrieved from