Dear Friends,

While child hunger rates spiked during the pandemic, student participation in school breakfast and lunch declined dramatically. According to a new report from the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC), school breakfast participation during the 2020-2021 school year decreased by about 4.7%, and school lunch participation decreased by about 30.7%, compared to pre-pandemic levels. Throughout the pandemic, schools relied on flexibilities granted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) nationwide school nutrition waivers, without which this decline would surely have been more drastic.

In 2020, Congress granted the USDA the authority to issue these waivers, which have allowed child nutrition programs to adjust and continue operating as best they can among school closures, virtual learning, staff shortages, and recently, supply chain issues. With the current waivers set to expire on June 30, 2022, it's critical that Congress extend the USDA's waiver authority. Help support child nutrition, and urge your members of Congress to sign-on to H.R. 6613, Keeping School Meals Flexible Act, to extend the USDA's waiver authority through the 2022-2023 school year.

Don't wait! Register today for our 26th Annual Race Against Hunger. Walk, run, or bike to end hunger and support our Greater Philadelphia neighbors. This year's Race is virtual, making it even easier for you to participate wherever is most convenient for you. If you are unable to participate, please consider making a donation to support our mission and share this Race with your friends and family.

SNAP Hotline

SNAP Hotline In Action: Recently, a gentleman called our SNAP Hotline and requested help applying for SNAP benefits. As a returning citizen who was leaving prison and integrating back into society after 15 years, the world he had known had changed drastically. Our SNAP Hotline Counselor helped him apply for SNAP over the phone. He was approved and has begun receiving benefits. He thanked us for our professionalism, attention to detail, and mentioned that our service has been the only thing that has gone smoothly for him. Our SNAP Hotline Counselor also forwarded him the name of an organization that will help with employment training and future placement. He is now enrolled in this program and will begin classes soon. He thanked us again for looking past his conviction and seeing him as a person in need of assistance.

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.

Policy and Advocacy

This week, we have several important updates to ensure that you are taking full advantage of all benefits and resources available to you.

Low-Income Water Assistance Program (LIWAP) - LIWAP is a temporary assistance program created by the American Rescue Plan Act that began in 2022. LIWAP can help households that are in emergency situations maintain essential water access. Emergency situations may include households that are behind on water bill payments, facing shutoff, or already terminated. To qualify, a household's income must be at or below 150% of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines (see this chart). For more information on LIWAP, see this flyer in English and Spanish from Community Legal Services.

Special Supplemental Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) - Last week, Abbott Nutrition, a producer of infant formula, recalled certain powdered formula, a change that affected participants of WIC. In response to this recall, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) granted PA WIC certain temporary flexibilities to help participants through this change. Pennsylvania has been approved for the following waivers:

• Medical Documentation: Waives the need for families receiving Food Packages I and II to provide medical documentation in order to be issued noncontract brand infant formula. 
• Maximum Monthly Allowance: Waives the maximum monthly allowance (MMA) for infant formula. This applies to families receiving Food Package I and II only.
• Vendor Exchanges: Waives the regulations that stop WIC vendors from making any exchanges that are not exchanges for identical products. 

Despite these flexibilities, we know that many WIC families have had difficulty getting the formula that they need for their children. You can find more information about this recall at at www.pawic.com

Tax Credits: This year, many families are eligible for expanded tax credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC). To take full advantage of these credits, file a tax return by April 18! Philadelphia’s Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity (CEO) has launched a new website to help Philadelphian’s get their refunds: www.claimyourmoneyphl.com. This website has information about tax credits available to families, as well as referrals to two organizations that can help you file your taxes virtually or in person, Campaign for Working Families (CWF) and Ceiba. For those that do not live in Philadelphia, www.getyourrefund.org is another resource that can help you file your taxes for free. Keep an eye on our social media. In the coming weeks, we will be sharing additional resources about the EITC and CTC to help you understand if you might qualify for these credits!

Food Pantry & Soup Kitchens

Important Reminders:

If you are a food pantry or soup kitchen that wants to participate in the 2022 Race Against Hunger and use the Race as a fundraiser for your program, the deadline for submitting the 2022 Race Against Hunger Agreement is March 31st! Please contact Derek at [email protected] with any questions you may have about the upcoming Race Against Hunger. If you need an agreement sent to you, contact Tanya at [email protected]. 

Do we have your food pantry or soup kitchen listed and up-to-date on our Pantry Map? (Last year we had over 88,400 views to our map!) You can search for your program or other community food programs on our map here: http://hungercoalition.org/food-pantries. Please send any updates to Tanya at [email protected].