The weekly Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) News Digest highlights what's new on hunger, nutrition and poverty issues at FRAC, at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, around the network of national, state and local anti-poverty and anti-hunger organizations, and in the media. The Digest will alert you to trends, reports, news items and resources and, when available, link you directly to them.

1. Federal Role in Redressing Poverty Is Indispensable
2. USDA Proposes to Add Fruits, Vegetables and Whole Grains to WIC Food Package
3. Low-Income Communities Breed Childhood Obesity, Lack Access to Healthier Foods, Nutrition Education and Budgets to Buy Healthier Items
4. School Gym Teachers Try Innovative Approach to Students’ Fitness
5. Editorial: Congress Should Pay Attention to “Public Dismay” at Inaction on Raising Minimum Wage
6. Growing Income Gap: Super-Rich Are Only Winners in Today’s Economy
7. No Longer Just a Blue-Collar Fixture, Wage Stagnation Now Affects People With College Degrees
8. Federal Government Plans to Eliminate Jobs of Nearly Half the IRS Lawyers Who Audit Estates of the Rich
9. Pennsylvania: Hunger is Growing; One out of 10 People at Risk of Going Hungry
10. Nevada: Las Vegas Ordinance Makes It Illegal to Give Food or Meals to Homeless People in Parks
11. Missouri: St. Louis Food Stamp Households Will Get Replacement for Food Lost Due to Storm-Related Food Spoilage
12. Missouri: Food Pantries Discard Food Spoiled During Electricity Blackouts While More Clients Come for Help
13. New York Broome County Reaching Out to Seniors to Educate Them About Food Stamps
14. New Hampshire School District Will Boost High School Students’ Learning With Healthy Breakfasts
15. Op-Ed: Private System of Signing People for Benefits Has Been “Disaster”; New Direction Needed to Ensure System Has Enough Trained Staff
16. New Colorado Law Requires Proof of Legal U.S. Residence for Receiving State and Federal Benefits, Except Food Stamps and Medicaid
17. Rhode Island Group Asks to Ban Electricity Shut-Offs to Households During Summer Heat
18. Massachusetts Legislators Approve Minimum Wage Increase, Overriding Governor’s Veto
19. California Schools With At Least 40 Percent Free and Reduced-Price Lunch Students Will Get Millions in Technology Funds
20. Florida Homes Built for Low-Income Families Bought and Resold for Quick Profits by Others

1. Federal Role in Redressing Poverty Is Indispensable

(“The Federal Government—the Indispensable Player in Redressing Poverty,” frac.org, August 7, 2006)

This article in the May-June Clearinghouse Review is by FRAC President Jim Weill. The special issue was devoted to articles on what the federal government must do to end poverty. Weill’s framework article describes why, despite past shortcomings of federal efforts to build economic security, a robust federal role in fighting poverty and building economic security is essential. The article reviews the historic, political, economic, fiscal and philosophical underpinnings of the federal role.

http://www.frac.org/html/news/weill_article06.html (summary)

http://www.frac.org/pdf/Weil06.pdf (full article)

2. USDA Proposes to Add Fruits, Vegetables and Whole Grains to WIC Food Package

(“Fruits and Vegetables Added to WIC List,” examiner.com, August 4, 2006)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed to add fruits, vegetables and whole grains to the food packages for low-income mothers and children participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants & Children (WIC). The revisions reflect recommendations from the Institute of Medicine, which worked to incorporate nutritional standards and the new USDA dietary guidelines. “The WIC food package has not been revised or updated since 1980,” said Kate Coler of USDA. “For WIC clients, this is going to make a huge difference,” said Geri Henchy of the Food Research and Action Center. “We like the idea that there are choices, that clients go to the grocery store and can pick the fruits and vegetables they want.” Anti-hunger advocates welcome the changes, but feel disappointed over the agency’s decision to include less fruits and vegetables than recommended by the Institute of Medicine to keep the program’s cost unchanged from current levels. Advocates also note that the monthly benefit value would increase for women and infants, but drop for children ages 1 through 5, although children in this age group are the majority of WIC clients. USDA will be accepting public comments on the revised WIC package over the next three months and is expected to approve the revisions next year.

http://www.examiner.com/a-205415~Gov_t_Adding_Fruits__Veggies_to_WIC_List.html

Also see http://www.frac.org/html/news/newWICpack80406.html (Preliminary summary of the new WIC food package proposal by the Food Research and Action Center)

http://www.frac.org/html/news/statement80406.html (“FRAC Statement in Response to USDA Rule (Published August 4, 2006) Proposing New WIC Food Package”)

3. Low-Income Communities Breed Childhood Obesity, Lack Access to Healthier Foods, Nutrition Education and Budgets to Buy Healthier Items

(“The Neglected Link Between Food Marketing and Childhood Obesity in Poor Neighborhoods,” prb.org, July 2006)

Improving access to healthier foods and nutrition education is critical to decreasing childhood obesity in low-income communities and among racial and ethnic minorities, writes Marlene Lee of the Population Reference Bureau. Both blacks and whites increase consumption of healthier foods when they live within proximity of at least one supermarket. “With each additional supermarket in a neighborhood, fruit and vegetable intake increased 32 percent among African Americans and 11 percent among whites living there.” Research shows that middle- and higher-income neighborhoods have two to four times as many supermarkets as do low-income neighborhoods, which also have fewer fruit and vegetable markets, bakeries, specialty stores, and natural food stores. A survey in Los Angeles and Sacramento grocery stores found that a two-week supply of healthier foods in these cities costs on average $230 more than a two-week supply based on the USDA $194 thrifty food plan used for food stamps. “The $36 difference is attributable to the higher cost of whole grains, lean ground beef, and skinless poultry. Switching to the healthier food market basket would increase by 30 percent to 40 percent the average amount ($2,410) that U.S. low-income consumers spend each year on food.” An economic analysis by Adam Drewnowski and Nicole Darmon shows that budget constraints and higher costs of healthier food items are a likely barrier to healthy eating among poor families. Public health strategies largely neglect the specific needs of low-income communities.

http://tinyurl.com/jcv5q

4. School Gym Teachers Try Innovative Approach to Students’ Fitness

(“New Breed of Gym Teachers Wants Kids Fit for Life,” pe.com, August 2, 2006)

Two former classmates at the University of Texas at Arlington, Stacy Turner and Phil Brown, are heading to the front lines of school physical education, getting their first jobs as PE teachers in Mansfield, Texas. Over the years, physical education has endured cutbacks in time, resources and respect, but now has become ever more important with the childhood obesity endemic. “It’s a new era,” Brown says. “You don’t just roll out the ball and let them play. We need to try to have an impact.” Turner’s T-shirt proclaims her philosophy: “No child left on their behind.” A new breed of gym teachers wants students to sample all kinds of activities, from innovative games and climbing walls to dance and Pilates, and hopes that the students will stick to something they will do on their own. Their approach also incorporates lessons about nutrition and motivation and the lifelong implications of childhood fitness. Dolly Lambdin, past president of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, says PE teachers should have a broader role in schools than ever.

http://tinyurl.com/jepbo

5. Editorial: Congress Should Pay Attention to “Public Dismay” at Inaction on Raising Minimum Wage

(“Chicago’s Message,” nytimes.com, July 28, 2006)

A new City Council ordinance in Chicago requires large retailers to pay higher wages and benefits than smaller businesses, which will affect Wal-Mart and likely trigger some legal challenges, writes this editorial in The New York Times. “While Chicago was debating how much money working parents need to feed, clothe and house their children, the Congressional majority in Washington has been dodging any vote on a minimum-wage increase in favor of slashing taxes for millionaires. They might be well advised to pay attention to the most recent New York Times/CBS News poll, which found 85 percent of respondents supported raising the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour from $5.15 an hour. … “Most of the working poor will not be helped by simply targeting big retailers.” What the Chicago ordinance really shows is “public dismay” at a situation where workers are paid too little to survive.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/28/opinion/28fri3.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

6. Growing Income Gap: Super-Rich Are Only Winners in Today’s Economy

(“The Rise of the Super-Rich,” select.nytimes.com, July 19, 2006)

“Income inequality used to be about rich versus poor, but now it’s increasingly a matter of the ultra rich and everyone else,” writes Teresa Tritch in The New York Times. Tritch points to data from government and academic sources that show the growing income gap and America’s transformation to “a less fair” and “a less stable” society. According to an analysis by Goldman Sachs, for the bottom 60 percent of households average income grew by less than 20 percent from 1979 to 2004, with almost all of the gains occurring from the mid- to late 1990s. Before and since, real incomes for that group have been flat. “The best-off Americans are not only winning by an extraordinary margin right now. They are the only ones who are winning at all.” The link between rising productivity and economic prosperity has been broken. During the years that George W. Bush has been in the White House, productivity growth has been stronger than ever, but the compensation of all workers, excluding the top 20 percent, has been flat or falling. The economic health of most American families greatly depends on government actions, argues Tritch. If the government “merely ‘gets out of the way,’ inequality is bound to persist and – if recent results are any indication of future performance – worsen.” The Bush administration is not just getting out of the way, but is “aggressively and affirmatively” pursuing policies that widen the gap, such as a stagnant minimum wage, tax cuts for the wealthy and assaults on programs for the poor and middle class.

http://tinyurl.com/jb6y8 (subscription or purchase required)

7. No Longer Just a Blue-Collar Fixture, Wage Stagnation Now Affects People With College Degrees

(“That Raise Might Take 4 Years to Earn as Well,” latimes.com, July 24, 2006)

For the first time in 30 years, wage stagnation, typically the affliction of blue-collar workers, is now affecting people with bachelor’s degrees. Their earnings fell 5.2 percent from 2000 to 2004 when adjusted for inflation, according to White House economists. Stagnant wages represent a significant setback for about 30 million Americans with a four-year degree and no advanced degree who thought their education gave them more chances to benefit from the nation’s economic growth. During the last period of an economic upswing, 1995 to 2000, these workers prospered, with inflation-adjusted average wages rising 12 percent, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Similar trends are affecting those with advanced degrees. Paul Harrington, a labor economist at Northeastern University in Boston, said one cause of the decline is the continued effort by businesses to replace salaried jobs with benefits with part-time and freelance jobs without benefits. “The administration is saying the only reason people are not sharing in the recovery is they don’t have the right skills,” said Lawrence Mishel of the Economic Policy Institute. But if college graduates are not doing well, Mishel noted, “what does that say?”

http://tinyurl.com/h85eh

8. Federal Government Plans to Eliminate Jobs of Nearly Half the IRS Lawyers Who Audit Estates of the Rich

(“I.R.S. to Cut Tax Auditors,” select.nytimes.com, July 23, 2006)

The Bush administration is planning to eliminate the jobs of nearly half of 345 estate tax lawyers at the Internal Revenue Service who audit tax returns filed for the wealthiest Americans, particularly those subject to gift and estate taxes when they transfer property to their heirs. IRS estate tax lawyers are extremely productive; they find an average of $2,200 in unpaid taxes per hour of work. Six IRS lawyers whose jobs are scheduled for elimination said the cuts were intended to shield people with political connections and complex tax-avoidance devices from thorough audits. Veteran IRS estate tax lawyer Sharyn Phillips called the cuts a “back-door way for the Bush administration to achieve what it cannot get from Congress, which is repeal of the estate tax” altogether. IRS deputy commissioner Kevin Brown dismissed any suggestions about protecting tax avoidance by the rich. Over the last five years, officials at IRS and the Treasury have reported to Congress that cheating among the highest-income Americans is a major and growing problem. “This is not a game the poor will win, but the rich will,” said John Hruska, IRS estate tax lawyer.

http://tinyurl.com/fh25m (subscription or purchase required)

9. Pennsylvania: Hunger is Growing; One out of 10 People at Risk of Going Hungry

(“A Gnawing Problem / Report: 1 in 10 in Pa. at Risk of Going Hungry,” post-gazette.com, July 28, 2006)

Jake Lawrence from Pittsburgh has been going to a food pantry every month for about a year. “Before, I could scramble and make do,” said Lawrence, 67, who used to work as a truck driver but now is disabled. “But with the high gas bills and my health issues, I just can’t seem to make ends meet. I had to go find help.” There are many other new faces at local food banks. “We have a problem in southwestern Pennsylvania, [and] it’s getting worse,” said Joyce Rothermel of the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, which last year conducted a hunger survey of 400 clients and leaders at 320 food pantries in southwestern Pennsylvania. One out of every 10 Pennsylvanians faces food insecurity, which is the worst rating for the state since the U.S. Department of Agriculture began keeping records.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06209/709286-51.stm

10. Nevada: Las Vegas Ordinance Makes It Illegal to Give Food or Meals to Homeless People in Parks

(“Las Vegas Makes It Illegal to Feed Homeless in Parks,” nytimes.com, July 28, 2006)

Retired restaurant owner and advocate for Las Vegas homeless Gail Sacco criticized a new city ordinance that makes it illegal to provide “food or meals to the indigent for free or for a nominal fee” in public parks. In the past decade, Las Vegas has seen its homeless population double to about 12,000 people and has joined several other cities in attempts to use the law to discourage homeless people from congregating, usually by restricting the time or place of food distribution. The Las Vegas ordinance is the first to make feeding the homeless an offense, although city officials said they are not going to punish good Samaritans for casual handouts. The ordinance would be enforced against people like Sacco whose regular offerings, they said, have lured the homeless to parks and have led to complaints by residents. “I don’t think anybody in America wants people to starve to death,” said Gary Reese, the mayor pro tem and a City Council member. “But if you want to help somebody, people can go to McDonald’s or Kentucky Fried Chicken and give them a meal.” Reese pointed out that the law would help the homeless by forcing them to seek meals at soup kitchens run by social service providers that offer other assistance as well. Soup kitchens said they could feed more people than they do, but Las Vegas homeless shelters have a severe shortage of shelter space. The ACLU said it would challenge the ordinance.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/28/us/28homeless.html (subscription or purchase required)

11. Missouri: St. Louis Food Stamp Households Will Get Replacement for Food Lost Due to Storm-Related Food Spoilage

(”Family Support Division Responds to St. Louis Area Needs,” infozine.com, July 25, 2006)

Department of Social Services (DSS) offices in the St. Louis area were hard hit by power outages during recent storms and struggled to maintain full operations at 50 percent of the local offices. Today all the office operations are back to normal, but long lines were reported at many of them. “We ask for people’s patience, as we do our very best to serve them,” said Janel Luck, Family Support Division Director in Jefferson City, Mo. Luck also explained that “the Family Support Division is able to replace food stamp benefits for Food Stamp households that lost food purchased with their food stamps as a result of the power outages.” Affected food stamp recipients are eligible for a replacement equal to the amount that they lost, if they come to a local DSS office to fill in a one-page form.

http://www.infozine.com/news/stories/op/storiesView/sid/16680/

12. Missouri: Food Pantries Discard Food Spoiled During Electricity Blackouts While More Clients Come for Help

(“Many Toss Away Spoiled Meals as Food Needs Grow,” stltoday.com, July 25, 2006)

People with HIV, AIDS and cancer, who enjoy a hot lunch served by Food Outreach in midtown St. Louis every Monday, lost one of their meals to the stormy weather when Food Outreach had to throw out about 5,500 prepared meals that had spoiled during electricity outages. Other food services were also forced to discard large amounts of food or turn away clients. Meanwhile, local food agencies are experiencing a surge of clients. People from low-income families who lost their food during the storms “go from one emergency to the next,” said Sunny Schaefer of Operation Food Search, a warehouse that supplies about 300 agencies in Missouri and Illinois. The storms came at a particularly difficult time for food pantries. Typically, donations are lower in the summer since churches and other groups do not organize food drives during summer months. Children who receive subsidized school meals when school is in session cannot rely on them in the summer and are adding to the demand for emergency food.

13. New York Broome County Reaching Out to Seniors to Educate Them About Food Stamps

(“Food Stamps Ease Financial Burden,” pressconnects.com, July 31, 2006)

“Have you ever been worried about the rising cost of food? Does it make you nervous that you may not be able to afford groceries? We may have an answer for you,” writes the Successful Aging newsletter produced by the Broome County Office for Aging in New York, reaching out to senior citizens and explaining the benefits of participation in the Food Stamp Program. It is also focusing on convincing seniors that they should not be embarrassed to apply for food stamps, and that there have been many positive changes in the program. Paper coupons have been replaced with electronic benefit cards to keep transactions private, and seniors are allowed to use food stamp benefits toward Meals on Wheels and local senior center meals. “This can be a great way for you to improve your health by eating a more balanced diet. What’s more, you also would be helping out your community by contributing to the cost of such meals and pumping more money back into the local economy.”

http://tinyurl.com/z4xy6

14. New Hampshire School District Will Boost High School Students’ Learning With Healthy Breakfasts

(“Londonderry Schools to Roll out a New Breakfast Program,” unionleader.com, August 3, 2006)

The Londonderry (N.H.) School District is planning to launch a breakfast program in its high schools this year. The breakfasts will offer a healthy menu, including fresh fruit and cereals, and will be available every morning from 6:50 a.m. to 7:15 a.m. before classes start, as well as during mid-term and final exams. School cafeterias will continue to serve snacks during morning classes. High school students “need some fuel. If they eat supper at 6 o’clock, some of them will go 18 hours (until lunch) without eating,” said Assistant Principal Art Psaledas. “Studies by Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital found that students who participated in school breakfast (programs) had improved math grades, reduced hyperactivity, decreased absence and tardy rates and improved psycho-social behaviors,” said Food Services Director Nancy Faucon in a report to the school board. The program will follow nutritional requirements of the National School Breakfast Program. New Hampshire also will add 3 cents to reimbursements for every breakfast sold in school districts that have a wellness policy, as does Londonderry.

http://tinyurl.com/z7ld2

15. Op-Ed: Private System of Signing People for Benefits Has Been “Disaster”; New Direction Needed to Ensure System Has Enough Trained Staff

(“Celia Hagert: Want Welfare? Don’t Count on Texas’ New, Inadequately Staffed System for Help,” dallasnews.com, August 3, 2006)

Since Texas’s new system for determining eligibility for public health care and food stamps was launched six months ago, more than 100,000 children have lost their health insurance and thousands of families have been left without food, writes Celia Hagert of the Center for Public Policy Priorities in The Dallas Morning News. “Whether you get help now might just as well be determined by rolling dice. It is morally reckless to gamble with the well-being of the 4 million Texans who depend on public services – mostly children, the elderly and people with disabilities.” A modernized system run by a private contractor was supposed to save taxpayers money, reduce workload for staff and improve services to clients, but “the reality has been a disaster.” The state “erroneously assumed that poorly trained, low-wage workers could do the jobs of highly trained, higher-wage state employees.” As a result, “public assistance has become harder to get, and claimed savings never materialized. In May, the state postponed extending the new system and begged a thousand state workers to stay on the job.” “No matter how the state divides duties between the public and private sectors, it needs enough trained staff,” writes Hagert. A state of the art system that can increase access to services and save money is a worthy goal. But the savings came from cutting staff, not from more efficient ways to help clients.

http://tinyurl.com/jm22g

16. New Colorado Law Requires Proof of Legal U.S. Residence for Receiving State and Federal Benefits, Except Food Stamps and Medicaid

(“Colorado Governor Signs Immigration Law,” nytimes.com, August 1, 2006)

Gov. Bill Owens signed a package of immigration laws that might force one million Colorado recipients of state and federal benefits to prove they are legal U.S. residents. The law requires government agencies to verify benefit eligibility of adult recipients older than 18. Expecting an avalanche of people seeking waivers while they obtain the documents they need, the state extended the deadline for the required identification until March 1 and designated 23 driver’s license bureaus as places to apply for waivers. The state will grant temporary waivers to 4,000 people in nursing homes or people with chronic health problems and accept some other forms of identification. Another new measure requires employers to verify their workers’ legal residency status before they can receive grants from the state Economic Development Commission. Owens said the federal government forbids the state from imposing stricter limits on food stamps and Medicaid, but he believes the state should be allowed to make its own rules for those programs. Flora Archuleta of the Immigrant Resource Center pointed out that the law will not reduce the number of illegal immigrants, but only will prompt them to hide or get false documents. Many legal immigrants, Archuleta said, are going without state services for fear of harassment.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/01/us/01brfs-002.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Editor’s note: Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for food stamps or Medicaid.

17. Rhode Island Group Asks to Ban Electricity Shut-Offs to Households During Summer Heat

(“Advocates for Poor Ask for Stop to Utility Shut-Offs on Hot Days,” boston.com, July 28, 2006)

The George Wiley Center, a Rhode Island social justice advocacy group, submitted a petition to the state Public Utilities Commission to ask for a ban on utility companies shutting off electricity to delinquent customers during hot days when temperatures exceed 90 degrees. The group expressed concern that the shut-offs could lead to heat-related deaths among low-income people, who cannot afford to pay for electricity. David Graves, a National Grid spokesman, said the Division of Public Utilities and Carriers has not shut off electricity to its residential customers during the winter in the past. Wiley Center organizer Julie Silvia said there should also be a moratorium in the summer. She said electricity was disconnected from 6,742 Rhode Island households between April 15 and the end of June. Of these households, 1,485 were poor, elderly or disabled customers on food stamps or the low-income home energy assistance program.

http://tinyurl.com/kvx73

18. Massachusetts Legislators Approve Minimum Wage Increase, Overriding Governor’s Veto

(“Massachusetts Raises Minimum Wage,” metrowestdailynews.com, August 2, 2006)

The Massachusetts Senate and House of Representatives unanimously overrode Gov. Mitt Romney's veto of a minimum wage increase. Starting Jan. 1, minimum wage workers will be paid $7.50 per hour in 2007 and $8 per hour in 2008. “For those of us that care about the minimum wage, it’s simply an issue of fairness, of economic justice,” said Sen. Marc R. Pacheco, chief sponsor of the minimum wage legislation. Although even $8 an hour does not make a “living wage” in Massachusetts, where a family of four must earn at least $40,000 per year to afford housing, child care and utilities, this increase is a step that will help 315,000 people see a little more in their paychecks next year.

http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=137018

19. Students Will Get Millions in Technology Funds

(“California’s Low-Income Schools to Get High-Tech Windfall,” latimes.com, July 27, 2006)

The California Department of Education announced that state schools could benefit from an antitrust settlement with Microsoft by receiving more than $400 million in school technology funds. Schools in districts with state-approved technology plans and at least 40 percent of their students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunches would be eligible for funding that could be used for computer hardware or software, technology maintenance and infrastructure, network equipment or professional development. “The lack of technology in our classrooms hurts students from low-income families the most,” said Jack O’Connell, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. “All of these resources will help our schools in their efforts to improve achievement, [and] close the achievement gap” between low-performing students and their peers, O’Connell said.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-schools27jul27,1,5107287.story

20. Florida Homes Built for Low-Income Families Bought and Resold for Quick Profits by Others

(“Homes for the Low-Income Were Snapped Up by Other Buyers Who Flipped Then for a Profit,” rismedia.com, July 26, 2006)

In Miami-Dade County, Fla., which has one of the most dramatic affordable housing shortages in the nation, developers entrusted with government land and money to build homes for low-income families instead have sold them to real estate investors and wealthy buyers who “flipped” them for quick profits. The Miami-Dade Housing Agency has not stopped this scheme, even though it compromises a 5-year-old county program intended to bring new life to empty lots. Since 2001, developers promised to build 580 homes, but delivered only 190 homes, and not all of them have been sold to needy families. Miami’s working poor who have been hunting for homes in the program for years are frustrated by waiting lists and delinquent developers. The agency has not bothered to confiscate unused lots from developers even though the land is supposed to revert back to the county if construction is not started in 12 months.

http://rismedia.com/index.php/article/articleview/15368/1/1/