Dear Friends,

The Week to Fight Hunger is officially over. We cannot thank you enough for your patience and continued support as we transitioned our gala from an in-person event to a virtual campaign. While we weren’t able to see you in person, we are so thankful for your donations and silent auction purchases. Your generous contributions help us to continue our work serving individuals and families in the Philadelphia region who struggle with food insecurity. If you didn’t get a chance to follow our Week to Fight Hunger campaign, you can learn more about our programs here, or catch up on our work during the pandemic in our newly released 2020-2021 Annual Report. 

​​A HUGE thank you to our Week to Fight Hunger sponsors: Lincoln Financial Group, Stradley Ronon, Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, Jackson Lewis, Donald & Cordelia Delson, Bruce & Elizabeth M. P. Rubin, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, and one anonymous donor (you know who you are)!

Policy and Advocacy

Build Back Better Act - As you’ve no doubt heard in the news, non-stop negotiations on the Build Back Better Act continue in the nation’s capital with many elements of its size, scope, and funding sources still up in the air. We ask that you connect with your Member of Congress directly through this simple to use FRAC Action Network tool to send a pre-written or custom email, urging that the nearly $35 billion investment in school meal and summer nutrition programs remains in the final legislation, as well as other critical anti-poverty investments, including the refundable Child Tax Credit (CTC). How critical is the CTC? The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities highlighted new data from the U.S. Census Bureau that found over 90% of low-income families use their CTC to pay for necessities, including food.

SNAP Emergency Allotments - On the administrative front, at the federal level, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced another 90 day extension of the federal COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) from October 18, 2021 - Jan. 16, 2022 (extensions are legally limited to 90 days). As we have mentioned before, SNAP “Emergency Allotments” (EAs) - the extra SNAP dollars households get in the second half of the month to help with food costs due to the pandemic - are tied to the federal public health emergency. This extension means that the Department of Human Services (DHS) will be able to seek approval from USDA to continue EAs in Pennsylvania for at least a few more months (and potentially longer if the public health emergency is extended again).

Pandemic-EBT (P-EBT) Call Line - At the state level, DHS’ P-EBT call line (484-363-2137) finally went “live” at the end of last week. (P-EBT is the benefit that was established to help families afford food when their children could not access free and reduced-price school meals as a result of remote learning). Callers can reach staff to address issues during business hours (Mon.-Fri. 8:30am-4:30pm), although we have heard there have been some very long hold times. Outside of business hours, callers can still leave a voice message or report issues through the online portal.

Low-Income Heating Assistance Program (LIHEAP) - Earlier this week, DHS announced that the 2021-22 LIHEAP is open. The application period will remain open until May 6, 2022. Grants are based on household size, income, and the type of fuel used. To be eligible, the total household income cannot exceed 150 percent of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines (see this chart). To find out how much in benefits you may be eligible to receive, see DHS’ LIHEAP Benefit Table, and for additional details, these DHS LIHEAP brochures in English and Spanish. 

Food Pantry & Soup Kitchens

Food Pantry and Soup Kitchen Leaders: This is the time of year when the Coalition receives calls and emails from people who are looking for a holiday meal or holiday food box.  Do you want us to let callers know about your holiday food distribution? Will you need volunteers to help serve a holiday meal? Please email your event information or volunteer needs to Derek at [email protected] or Tanya at [email protected].

SNAP Hotline

Our Coalition Against Hunger SNAP Hotline team is here to help! Whether it’s navigating the SNAP application process or providing case management, our SNAP Hotline team is available to help Monday – Thursday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm and on Friday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Give our SNAP Hotline team a call at 215-430-0556.

And if you are looking to visit the County Assistance Offices (CAO), they are open for in-person assistance. You can visit their offices or contact their Customer Service Center at 215-560-7226 (Philadelphia) or 877-395-8930 (statewide). For phone numbers and addresses of all Philadelphia County Assistance offices, please use this link.