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Hunger advocates issue recommendations to fight food insecurity in Iowa
Some of the proposed policy changes and investments may have bipartisan support in the Iowa Legislature
Nov. 25, 2024 5:48 pm, Updated: Nov. 26, 2024 7:41 am
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Iowa antihunger advocates are calling on state leaders to participate in a summer federal food benefits program and raise income-eligibility requirements to fight hunger in Iowa.
Members of the Iowa Hunger Coalition held a virtual news conference Monday calling on Gov. Kim Reynolds to participate in a federal program that provides grocery-buying benefits to low-income families with school-aged children during the summer when schools are closed. Iowa has until Jan. 1, 2025 to submit notice of intent to participate in the program.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture last month denied Iowa’s proposed plan to provide boxes of food to low-income households with children next summer in lieu of participating in the federal food benefits program.
USDA’s Summer Expanded Benefits Transfer (EBT) program, now called SUN Bucks, provides $120 per child to low-income families to make food purchases during the summer when children are out of school. Instead, the state requested to use federal funding to provide three monthly boxes of food during the summer to qualifying food-insecure households.
The governor, in a statement to The Gazette last week, said the state will reapply for the waiver next year under President-elect Donald Trump’s new administration.
Reynolds has said her proposal would feed more children at a lower cost through wholesale pricing and bulk purchasing than the USDA program, while promoting healthier foods.
Reynolds’ office said the state program would be expanded to include families at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level — $25,820 for a family of three or $36,580 for a family of five. The current eligibility cap on the federal program is 185 percent of the poverty level.
The state estimates the program would be available to 300,000 Iowa children — roughly 56,000 more than under SUN Bucks.
“Our plan also addresses transportation challenges by offering food box deliveries for eligible recipients — an option not available through the summer EBT program,” Reynolds said in statement last week to The Gazette. “We look forward to presenting our plan to the new administration.”
Advocates: Best way to help families is direct financial assistance
The USDA and Iowa Hunger Coalition contend the best way to fight food insecurity and help low-income families is to provide direct financial assistance and allow parents to make food choices that best fit their family’s dietary needs.
John Boller, executive director of the Coralville Community Food Pantry, said Summer EBT is evidence-based policy that has been shown to improve healthy eating while reducing childhood food insecurity. Boller added parents should be trusted to make the best food choices for their children.
Summer EBT would provide an estimated 8.8 million meals to 245,000 children in Iowa — far more than are being served by summer meal sites, according to the Hunger Coalition.
The USDA in its denial letter also wrote there is limited federal funding to support summer feeding demonstration projects, and that existing SUN bucks options already provide meal site and delivery models contained in the Iowa proposal.
The nationwide Summer EBT program also has demonstrated capacity to reach more eligible children, whereas summer meal sites have historically had low levels of participation, according to the USDA letter.
Hunger Coalition members said Summer EBT is meant to complement, not replace, summer meal sites, and that a comprehensive approach is needed to ensure all eligible children have access to nutrition during the summer months.
Paige Chickering, Iowa state manager for Save the Children Action Network, said one in six Iowa children face hunger and 40 percent of SNAP Iowa beneficiaries are children.
Chickering said Summer EBT is essential to addressing barriers to access to existing nutrition programs for underserved and underprivileged children.
Anne Discher, executive director of Common Good Iowa — a statewide research and advocacy organization focused on a wide array of policies that promote opportunity for Iowans, including food security — also highlighted its potential economic impact on local communities.
SUN Bucks could be used to purchase food at more than 3,000 retailers and farmers markets in Iowa, as well as to purchase groceries online, with delivery options available.
“Food banks and food pantries are breaking record after record, and some are closing because they can't keep up with the demand, and others are fundraising for larger facilities,” Discher said. “We have to do something, and thankfully, we have proven policy solutions to address the crisis.”
Boller said the Coralville food pantry has witnessed an 81 percent increase in demand over the last two years for food assistance and home delivery programs. He said the pantry now serves nearly 5,000 individuals in the greater Coralville community
“So food pantries, food pantry staff, our infrastructure it's being maxed out. We're being stretched thin,” Boller said. “We're doing everything we can to ensure our neighbors get access to the food that they need and deserve, but we're still falling short. And it says a lot when it's coming from a food pantry in a pretty well-resourced community like Johnson County. We have professional, paid staff, amazing donor base, incredible food rescue efforts happening, but we're still running out of food at the end of the day.”
Coalition recommends expanding benefits eligibility
The Iowa Hunger Coalition recommended state officials:
- Raise income eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, that provides benefits for low-income households to buy groceries to 200 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL), up from the current 160 percent. The coalition said doing so would expand food assistance to an estimated 200,000 Iowans whose incomes are too high but still struggle to put food on table, half of whom are children or seniors. It would also increase the number of children eligible for Summer EBT and free school meals through direct certification.
- Provide state investment in the Double Up Food Bucks program that incentivizes the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables for SNAP participants, helping to address the high cost of healthy food that is a barrier for many SNAP recipients.
- Expand efforts to increase statewide participation in nutrition assistance programs like SNAP, WIC and free school meals. About 42 percent of eligible Iowans participate in SNAP and 45 percent participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
- Explore providing free school breakfast and lunch to all students who qualify for reduced-price meals, or at a minimum expand the Community Eligibility Provision to increase the number of students receiving free school meals.
Hunger coalition members said the policy changes and investments have bipartisan support in the Iowa Legislature and could bring in tens of millions of dollars in additional nutrition support for Iowans facing food insecurity and improve access to healthy food across the state.
State Rep. Sami Scheetz, a Democrat from Cedar Rapids, introduced a bill during the 2023 legislative session to expand the number of students who receive free school meals. House File 575 proposed allocating $1.1 million in state funds to cover the money owed for reduced-price meals. Scheetz said the move would provide free school meals to about 23,000 Iowa schoolchildren in low-income households.
Despite bipartisan support for the bill, including nearly 20 Republican cosponsors, the legislation failed to move in the Iowa House.
Even with a friendlier Trump administration, Elzinga said he doubts Iowa’s proposal will get the green light from the USDA.
“I think if this were just a minor waiver request, there may be a better shot. But this is not just a simple waiver request,” he said. “The state's asking to waive 29 separate pieces of federal code.”
Instead, Elzinga said Reynolds’ administration could “stack” existing flexibilities granted to summer meal sites, such as providing multiday food distributions, bulk food options and delivery, to closely replicate the food box program proposed by the state, while still accessing the Summer EBT money.
He and Boller noted more than half of Iowa school districts did not have a summer lunch site available this past year, leaving many eligible children without access.
“We appreciate the fact that Gov. Reynolds recognizes the hunger crisis facing our state and that far too many Iowans facing food insecurity are not currently being served by nutrition programs,” Elzinga said.
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
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