We know from extensive research that work requirements are ineffective for increasing employment or earnings and instead create bureaucratic barriers that cut off large numbers of people from vital aid, counterproductively making it harder to find and maintain stable employment.  These work requirements are rooted in racist and classist narratives, whereby low-income Americans and Americans of color are portrayed as lazy and undeserving. Scapegoating low-income Americans to promote policies that take away resources from households in need is unacceptable.

In addition to the harmful changes to SNAP and TANF, the compromise includes a claw back of COVID relief and limitations on domestic spending that will lead to further cuts in support to struggling individuals and families. These cuts only result in modest savings in the context of the federal budget but will push more people into poverty and hardship. We urge our Colorado delegation to reject any cuts that harm low-income Coloradans.  

If we chose to ensure that no American went hungry, we could easily do so. We hope that as we approach the Farm Bill, we remember that hunger and poverty are policy choices and it is our collective responsibility, and the responsibility of Congress, to make the right choices.   

“Food insecurity is at an all-time high in Colorado. We need programs like the Food Pantry Assistance Grant program to ensure there are healthier and locally procured foods for Colorado families. It is a smart investment for those facing hunger and for our local economy and farmers,” said Jason Harrison, community food systems manager at Hunger Free Colorado. “As Congress fails to act on more COVID-19 relief at the height of the pandemic, Colorado leaders are doing so. We appreciate them filling this hole in leadership during this crisis.”  

This legislation comes at a necessary time for Colorado’s emergency food system. Federal relief through the United States Department of Agriculture is coming to an end this month, resulting in the loss of an estimated $6 million per month in food resources for Colorado.  

“Constituents have shared with me about their struggle to afford food, as jobs and small businesses have been hit hard by this pandemic,” said Representative Lisa Cutter, a prime sponsor of the bill in the House of Representatives with Representative Rod Bockenfeld, and Senators Tammy Story and Dennis Hisey in the Senate. “I am proud to be a part of the solution and to be strengthening vital programs to provide Coloradans with access to nutritious food to weather this storm.” 

Legislation Overview

The legislation passed with overwhelming bi-partisan support. The Food Pantry Assistance Grant Program, HB20B-1003, allocates $5 million in funding for at least 150 food pantries and Colorado’s five food banks. In addition to direct food purchasing, grant recipients can use up to 20 percent of their award to cover food distribution costs, including transportation, home delivery, refrigeration and staffing. 

DENVER (Sept. 27, 2020) – According to a recent survey by Hunger Free Colorado, more than 29 percent of Coloradans are food insecure, meaning they lack reliable access to nutritious food, a rate that has tripled since the start of COVID-19. Parents, people of color and those with disabilities face even higher rates of food insecurity. The survey found that 38 percent of non-white and Latinx individuals are currently struggling to put food on the table, compared to 25 percent of white Coloradans. Additionally, almost half of those living with a disability are facing hunger, with many reporting that they struggle to access food due to the high cost of healthy items and a lack of transportation.

The poll, repeated quarterly, surveyed 550 Coloradans across the state to find out how the pandemic has impacted their access to food and economic security. Hunger remains a top concern for almost 1 in 5 Colorado households. Compared to the July poll, general rates of hunger have remained steady, but there have been some improvements around child hunger.

Currently, forty five percent of households with children are food insecure and nearly half of parents reported that they were okay prior to COVID-19 but now worry about covering expenses in the next few weeks or months. Despite these startling statistics, fewer parents had to skip or cut back on their children’s meals, in addition to their own, to make ends meet, dropping from 23 percent from July to 13 percent in September. This could be due to concerted outreach to Colorado families about resources to get nutritious food during the economic crisis caused by COVID-19, including vital programs such as universal school meals and Pandemic EBT.

“We’re glad that Congress has continued school meals program flexibilities to make it easier for families to provide meals for their children, but pandemic-related school closures are still creating barriers to access for many students. The extension of Pandemic EBT through the school year can play a critical role in filling the gap,” said Marc Jacobson, CEO of Hunger Free Colorado, a leading nonprofit anti-hunger organization. “The next step for Congress is to invest in strengthening SNAP, as well as other nutrition and economic supports, to ensure those impacted by COVID-19 have the help they need until our economy recovers.”

SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is a proven and effective tool to assist low-income households and provide counter-cyclical help in recessions. SNAP provides recipients with funds to purchase food at local grocery stores, helping families get needed nutrition and providing an economic boost for our state.

Based on these findings, Hunger Free Colorado is calling on Congress to prioritize food assistance in the current relief package. Thousands of Coloradans have joined Hunger Free Colorado in this call to action through mail, phone calls and emails. Hunger Free Colorado has the following key recommendations:

Key Recommendations:

• Increase SNAP benefits by 15 percent for long term economic needs of Coloradans and continue emergency allotments through the economic recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This will help families afford the food they need to make it through the coming months.
• Continue and improve funding for emergency food systems through the economic crisis caused by COVID-19.
• Continued outreach to Coloradans about food assistance programs as some experience food insecurity for the first time due to the economic and health impacts of the pandemic.

“We need to strengthen vital programs that can provide Coloradans with access to nutritious food to weather this pandemic,” stated Jacobson. “Congress should include these recommendations in the current relief bill as an investment in our families and in our communities.”

View the poll findings from September or July and learn about the issue of hunger in Colorado online at HungerFreeColorado.org.

Media Contact: Ellie Agar, Director of Communications, (720) 464-3620

The window to apply for a pandemic response food relief program is closing. Colorado families with school- aged children who qualify for free and reduced-price lunch can apply for $279 in food benefits per child through September 23rd. The program, called Pandemic EBT, is the first of its kind and meant to help families cover the costs of food they incurred when school was let out across Colorado in March because of COVID-19.

Creating a new program comes with its challenges, including getting the information on the students who are eligible from nearly 200 school districts across the state. Data that was matched with Colorado’s SNAP program helped identify and issue benefits to more than 100,000 children, and an additional 50,000 have applied through a new online application the state created for the program. However, more than 200,000 students still qualify for the benefit and their families have only two weeks left to apply.

According to a survey of Coloradans by Hunger Free Colorado in June, 37 percent of families reported being food insecure, meaning they regularly couldn’t afford or have access to the food their family needed. One in four parents reported cutting back on their children’s meals in addition to their own. The rate of hunger is the highest we’ve seen in Colorado, three times what Coloradans experienced during the Great Recession.

If all eligible Colorado families applied for Pandemic EBT benefits, it would mean more than $100 million in help for families to buy food at Colorado retailers. Right now only about 44% of eligible Coloradans have received or applied for these benefits, leaving over $50 million in food relief for families on the table.

Now is the time to get this information to families. We know from survey after survey, Colorado families are struggling. We need our public leaders, school districts, teachers, advocates, everyone — to get the word out about this program. Colorado families are depending on us.

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Note: It is also important that the US Congress pass the next COVID-19 relief package and that it includes food relief, including an increase to SNAP benefits by 15% and extension of the Pandemic EBT program. The current Senate proposal, known as the skinny bill, is not enough. It would leave millions of people across the country, and in Colorado, hungry.

Media Contact: Ellie Agar, Director of Communications, (720) 464-3620

DENVER (June 18, 2020) – During our current health and economic crises, hunger has risen to unprecedented levels. According to a recent poll by Hunger Free Colorado, more than 37 percent of Coloradans are struggling to afford food, up from 9 percent a year ago, with families and people of color hit the hardest.

The poll, conducted by Kupersmit Research, a nonpartisan firm based in Denver, Colo., surveyed 500 Coloradans across the state to find out how their health and economic security had been impacted by COVID-19. The survey found almost 40 percent of households reporting a drop in income since the start of the pandemic, leading to concerns about meeting basic expenses like food and housing.

These findings come as Congress is debating nutrition provisions within a new federal relief bill, including a 15 percent increase in benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps. During the pandemic, emergency allotments have increased SNAP benefits for some families, but these could soon expire.

“SNAP has proven to be one of the most effective mechanisms available both to reach low-income households and to provide counter-cyclical help in recessions. SNAP provides recipients funds to purchase food at our local grocery stores, helping families get needed nutrition while also providing an economic boost,” said Marc Jacobson, CEO for Hunger Free Colorado, a leading anti-hunger, nonprofit advocacy organization. “Investing in strong federal nutrition programs is an investment in our families and in our communities.”

The situation for parents in Colorado is especially dire. More than half of parents reported being concerned about covering basic expenses in the next few weeks or months, despite being okay prior to COVID-19. 40 percent of parents were found to be skipping or cutting back on meals because there wasn’t enough money for food, more than twice the overall finding. Additionally, almost a quarter of parents reported that they also had to cut back on their children’s meals.

“The closure of school districts throughout Colorado meant the loss of free and reduced-price school meals for more than 350,000 students. Studies have shown lack of adequate nutrition in childhood can have long-term impacts on health and well-being long into adulthood,” shared Jacobson. “While the expansion of school and summer meal sites have helped, those will soon be closing unless additional flexibilities are passed at the federal level. Additionally, Pandemic EBT needs to be extended through the school year to help families with children access crucial food resources that are not available due to pandemic-related school closures.”

Based on the available data and firsthand stories from those facing hunger, Hunger Free Colorado is calling on Congress to prioritize food assistance in the current relief package. Thousands of Coloradans have joined Hunger Free Colorado in this call to action through mail, phone calls and emails. Hunger Free Colorado has the following key recommendations:

Key Recommendations:

• Increase SNAP benefits by 15 percent and continue emergency allotments through the economic recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This will help families afford the food they truly need every month.
• Continue SNAP, WIC, and school meals program flexibilities that ensure staff and families in need can stay safe during the pandemic.
• Extend Pandemic EBT through the school year and provide federal funding for state administrative costs of the program to ensure families continue to have access to school meals while at home.

“This poll reinforces the need to strengthen vital programs that can provide Coloradans with access to nutritious food to weather this pandemic,” stated Jacobson. “Congress should include these recommendations in the current relief bill to ensure those most impacted by COVID-19 have the help they need until our economy recovers.”

View more poll findings and find out more about the issue of hunger in Colorado online at HungerFreeColorado.org.

Media Contact: Ellie Agar, Director of Communications, (720) 464-3620

DENVER (July 18, 2020) – With Monday’s adjournment of the state legislature, the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative (CCHI), Colorado Fiscal Institute, Colorado Children’s Campaign, and Hunger Free Colorado are calling on Senators Cory Gardner and Michael Bennet to move quickly in the Senate on the next COVID-19 relief package and ensure it includes increased federal support for Medicaid and food assistance programs and fiscal relief to state and local governments. Despite lawmakers passing legislation that offers some revenue for key state priorities, drastic cuts to the state budget mean there is an ongoing and urgent need for federal support so families and communities with the most barriers to overcome can access health care and nutrition support programs.

As unemployment reaches a record high level of 11.3 percent, hundreds of thousands of Coloradans will be leaning on Health First Colorado (Medicaid) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) to stay healthy and keep food on their tables. The serious economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have also drastically reduced tax revenue just when demand for public services is skyrocketing. Though Colorado lawmakers were able to close a $3.3 billion budget shortfall, it came at the cost of cuts to important health support programs when Colorado kids and families need them most. Colorado is anticipating about 500,000 new Medicaid enrollees by the end of the year, nearly all of whom will also be leaning on food assistance.

During the last recession, 40,000 Colorado kids fell into poverty and the state’s child poverty rate did not return to pre-recession levels for five years. Now, with even more families struggling to afford the basics like a roof over their head and food on their table, even more children will be experiencing the toxic stress of poverty during critical developmental periods. We must do more to help Colorado families recover quickly from these twin economic and public health crises.

Our organizations are calling on Colorado’s congressional delegation to continue to take action to provide necessary fiscal relief to states. While the House of Representatives acted on May 15th to pass the HEROES Act, the Senate has yet to take up this fourth COVID-19 relief package. Additional relief is necessary so the state is able to continue to respond to the needs of our residents amidst the fallout of the pandemic. Not only are Medicaid and food assistance two of the most important and responsive programs during a public health crisis, they also act as critical economic stabilizers for local economies. Senators Bennet and Gardner should act now to ensure increased and sustained federal funding for Medicaid and food assistance programs so Colorado families and local economies can come back from this devastating time in our history.

We are calling for:

• Flexible fiscal relief to the state to alleviate budget cuts to critical public services caused by COVID-19 and avoid further economic hardship
• A sustained increase of 14 percentage points or more to the Federal Medicaid Assistance Percentage until at least June 30, 2021
• Keeping strong Maintenance of Effort provisions for Medicaid to prevent eligibility cuts
• An increase of 15% in SNAP benefits for families
• Longer-term funding to cover the increased need for food assistance programs
• Extension of the Pandemic EBT program for children who qualify for free and reduced lunch through the 2020-2021 school year, and inclusion of children who qualify in pre-kindergarten
• Extensions of waivers helping families currently getting food through SNAP, school meals, WIC, and emergency feeding programs

“We must do more to ensure that families can access affordable health care and basic nutrition at this critical time,” said Adam Fox, director of strategic engagement with CCHI. “Due to the pandemic, thousands of families, especially Black and Latinx families that are already disproportionately impacted by the virus, are facing a loss of jobs, health insurance, transportation, child care and much more. Colorado needs a substantial and ongoing boost in federal funding for Medicaid and Food Assistance programs to serve the increasing needs of Coloradans.”

“Workers who have been laid off by their employer shouldn’t have to worry about basic needs like being able to feed their kids or affording a doctor visit,” said Kathy White, deputy director of the Colorado Fiscal Institute. “Not only are Medicaid and food assistance important tools for helping families make ends meet during difficult economic times, they also have a stabilizing effect on local economies. In 2017 alone, food assistance helped create over $700 million in

economic activity for local retailers, and Medicaid pumps nearly $6 billion into Colorado’s economy every year. If Congress allocates more fiscal aid for states, it will be a win for both Colorado families and the state’s economy.”

“Increased Medicaid and food assistance funding are critical for Colorado at this moment,” said Erin Miller, Vice President of Health Initiatives with the Colorado Children’s Campaign. “This state legislative session also showed us the importance of ensuring that enhanced Medicaid funding comes with strong maintenance of effort requirements — it is only these requirements that delayed benefit cuts and copay increases for people who use Medicaid for their health insurance now — often those Coloradans who face the greatest barriers to health and wellbeing already and many people of color who our systems too often leave behind.”

“As we recover, the health of our state will be reliant on Colorado families’ access to health care and nutritious food. We need long-term investments and policies in place to ensure they are available. These programs are vital to Colorado families right now, and we need to ensure they continue to provide the resources and care families need through this uncertain time,” said Ashley Wheeland, Director of Public Policy for Hunger Free Colorado.
Media Contact:

Adam Fox, 303-563-9108

Elliot Goldbaum, 303-990-6691

Ellie Agar, 720-464-3620

HB20-1422 will ensure the Colorado Food Pantry Assistance Grant program continues to help respond to growing food insecurity in Colorado due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to recent polling by Healthier Colorado, nearly one in three Colorado families report they are worried about the costs of food, compared to one in eleven prior to the pandemic.

“I thought that the legislature was right on in creating this grant. It’s exactly what we need. We don’t want those ranchers to end up having to come through our doors for assistance. We want them to thrive and then we want our clients to get what they need and want,” said a local food pantry director.

“Coloradans have come together to support each other through this pandemic. Dedicated funding will help us continue this work and make sure those on the front lines, our food pantries and food banks, have more resources to address the hunger crisis in our state,” said Marc Jacobson, CEO of Hunger Free Colorado.

These grants will help respond to growing hunger but are also an important investment in Colorado producers. Small farmers and producers are struggling with the loss of their local food markets and typical sales outlets, like restaurants. This bill will support our farmers by providing revenue to continue their work to feed our communities and address rising hunger in our state.

“This grant allows farmers to get a fair price for the items that they are growing and still help to feed their community, the people that they really want to be serving with what they grow,” said a participating Colorado producer.

House Bill 20-1422, to fund the Food Pantry Assistance Grant program, will help the state recover, by responding to food insecurity and putting dollars back into our local economies.

Media Contact: Ellie Agar, Director of Communications, (720) 464-3620

DENVER (January 28, 2020) — Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled to temporarily lift the nationwide injunction that was blocking implementation of the Trump administration’s new public charge regulation. This new rule would allow immigration officials to consider use of a wider range of public benefits, including SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) when determining if someone is likely to become a burden on the U.S. government in the future.

Hunger Free Colorado strongly opposes the public charge regulation and is deeply disappointed by the Court’s decision to allow implementation of a rule that will cause irreparable harm to the health and well-being of Colorado communities.

As the state’s leading anti-hunger organization, Hunger Free Colorado expects implementation of this rule to cause widespread increases in poverty, hunger and unmet health needs by making immigrant families afraid to use SNAP and other public benefits to weather life storms.

While the regulation directly affects only a small number of immigrants, the fear and confusion caused by the rule has already caused many families to forego vital public assistance that strengthens our communities – assistance that they are legally entitled to receive. Even though the rule does not consider the use of benefits by U.S. citizens or people not subject to the public charge test, these groups will feel the harmful impact of these regulations because of the fear it causes their family, extended family and community.

To clarify, while the new rule is harmful, it is also limited in scope. We want to remind Coloradans that food resources remain available and accessible in safe spaces. Most immigrants who qualify for the impacted public assistance programs, like SNAP, are not subject to public charge because these programs already have very strict eligibility requirements.

The public charge test does not apply to all immigrants. Refugees, asylees, survivors of trafficking, domestic violence and other serious crimes, and other “humanitarian” immigrants are not affected. Lawful permanent residents (or “green card holders”) are not affected unless they leave the U.S. for more than 180 days and seek to reenter. There is also no public charge test during the citizenship application process.

Many programs are not included in the new rule. Vital food and nutrition programs like WIC, free and reduced-price school meals, food pantries, soup kitchens and more are not included in the public charge test. If an individual is not subject to the public charge test, we highly recommend that they continue to use the SNAP benefits, also known as food stamps, that they and their family are eligible for.

Please call our free, bilingual and confidential Food Resource Hotline at 855-855-4626 to learn more about food resources in your community. No appointments needed, call Monday – Friday (8 am – 4:30 pm) and we’ll connect you and your family to nutritious food resources nearby.

Media Contact: Ellie Agar, Director of Communications, (720) 464-3620

DENVER (October 31, 2019) – Kathy Underhill is a nationally recognized leader and policy expert in solving hunger and was the founding CEO of Hunger Free Colorado. To honor her legacy, Hunger Free Colorado’s board of directors created the Kathy Underhill Scholarship Award to recognize an individual leading change as it relates to hunger and healthy food access. Fatuma Emmad, co-founder of FrontLine Farming, was selected as the first-year award recipient.

“Fatuma is a social justice warrior who also eloquently and beautifully expresses her passion for making healthy food accessible to all,” said Olga Gonzalez, executive director of Cultivando and selection committee member. “She demonstrates a genuine interest not only in cultivating the land but also in cultivating meaningful relationships among diverse people who come from all walks of life and from various countries and cultures.”

The spirit of the Kathy Underhill Scholarship Award is to recognize a community member who is changing hearts and minds in the hunger space with advocacy, policy, or community engagement through the lens of health equity. It comes with a $1000 scholarship to be used for professional development related to the awardee’s career and work within the hunger space. Fatuma Emmad was selected from a strong group of nominees by a committee composed of Hunger Free Colorado board members, community advocates, and the award namesake, Kathy Underhill.

In Emmad’s reception speech she shared:
We know that our food system is broken. We don’t need statistics to know racism is alive and well and centers itself in our most powerful weapons. Food is a weapon…We have created systems in which those who are the most abused by it are not allowed into the room where policies are made…I am proud to stand here with you all, my colleagues, because as we know that food is a weapon, it is also a shield…I lean on the history of the many women who have made their kitchens a space for us all to be authentically ourselves and to be fed. They showed us how to communicate love through food.

Fatuma Emmad is the co-founder of FrontLine Farming, a food and farmer advocacy group focusing on food growing, education, sovereignty and justice in the Front Range, and affiliate professor at Regis University in the Community Food Systems minor. Fatuma was born in Denver and raised in Denver and Ethiopia. Fatuma is currently entering her tenth year as a farm manager or farm operations director. Before becoming a farmer, Fatuma was a political scientist who engaged in issues affecting marginalized farming communities. She’s currently a member of the Sustainable Food Council for the City of Denver, a co-chair for the City’s Good Food Purchasing Policy Group and is a selected fellow for Transformational Leaders for Change.

For a photo of Fatuma Emmad receiving the award visit: bit.ly/fatumaHFC
(Photo of Jana Henthorn, Hunger Free Colorado Board Member, Fatuma Emmad, award recipient, Kathy Underhill, Hunger Free Colorado founding CEO)

About Hunger Free Colorado

Hunger Free Colorado, a statewide nonprofit organization, connects people to food resources to meet existing needs and drives policy, systems and social change to end hunger. Learn more at HungerFreeColorado.org.

Media Contact: Ellie Agar, Director of Communications, (720) 464-3620

“More than one in eleven Coloradans face times when there’s not enough money to buy food, but we can change that because hunger is solvable and the resources exist,” said Marc Jacobson, CEO for Hunger Free Colorado. “We are so pleased to have Whole Foods Market as a generous supporter and strong partner to connect more Coloradans—from children to older adults—to the nutritious food that they need to thrive.”

The awarded funding will support Hunger Free Colorado in launching a robust Farm to Food Pantry Initiative while enabling the organization’s ongoing efforts to connect Coloradans to food resources.

“We are proud to continue to support Hunger Free Colorado’s life-changing work throughout the state, connecting our communities to vital resources and food security,” said Sarah Palki, Senior Marketing Specialist at Whole Foods Market Rocky Mountain Region. “Together, with partners like Hunger Free Colorado, we are able to celebrate and strengthen our communities throughout the state, which is a core value for our brand and the foundation of Whole Foods Market.”

Hunger Free Colorado, a statewide nonprofit organization connects people to food resources to meet existing needs and drives policy, systems and social change to end hunger.

“Thanks to Whole Foods Market, we will continue to make significant progress in creating a healthier, stronger state where no Coloradan goes hungry anytime of the year,” shared Jacobson.

To learn more about the issue and solutions surrounding hunger in Colorado and how you can take action, visit HungerFreeColorado.org.
 

Media Contact: Ellie Agar, Director of Communications, (720) 464-3620