Issue 3, January 16, 2004

1. Report Finds National School Lunch Program Provides Essential Vitamins and Minerals
2. Survey Finds That Majority of Americans Fear Personal Poverty
3. Social Ills Like Hunger and Food Insecurity Are Notoriously Difficult to Measure
4. U.S. Catholic Bishops Say Private Sector, Government Must Improve Efforts to Combat Poverty
5. Recovery Period Job Growth Falls Far Short of President Bush's Projections
6. Editorial: Due to Stagnant Job Growth, Congress Should Renew Extended Unemployment Benefits
7. Advocacy Groups Plan Voter-Registration Drive for Low-Income Workers in 2004
8. National 4-H Youth Grants Program Now Accepting Applications
9. 2004 USDA Community Food Projects (CFP) Competitive Grants Program
10. Audit of Disaster Food Stamp Assistance in Virginia Following Hurricane Isabel Finds No Fraud
11. Miami Public, Private Leaders Urge Community Cooperation in Battle Against Poverty
12. Waiting List for Child Care Program in Kentucky is "Swamped" by Working Poor
13. Alaska Receives USDA Grant to Help Schools Start Breakfast Programs in 2004-2005
14. State Lawmakers Consider Legislation That Would Limit Outsourcing on Government Contracts
15. Editorial: Increasing Staffing and Improving Services Should Be Key to Social Service Changes
16. 64 Percent More Michigan Children Receive School Lunches Versus a Decade Ago

1. REPORT FINDS NATIONAL SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM PROVIDES ESSENTIAL VITAMINS AND MINERALS

(American Journal of Agricultural Economics, November 2003)

This report examined the impact of participation in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) on children's dietary intake at lunchtime and over 24 hours. Researchers found that NSLP participation leads to increased 24-hour intake of six vitamins and minerals, including calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, vitamin B12, and riboflavin, as well as dietary fiber. Participation was also found to increase the intake of dietary fat but lower a child's intake of added sugars. Researchers suggested that schools evaluate other foods available to students, including those offered in vending machines. "[Competitive foods] may also influence the quality of children's diets," said co-author Philip Gleason.

http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/links/doi/10.1111/1467-8276.00507/abs/

2. SURVEY FINDS THAT MAJORITY OF AMERICANS FEAR PERSONAL POVERTY

(U.S. Newswire, January 12, 2004)

An annual survey commissioned by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development found that 56 percent of American adults are concerned they will be poor at some point in their life, 5 percent more than last year. The "Poverty Pulse" survey is taken annually to determine public views on poverty. The survey also found that 96 percent of Americans think that it is important to address poverty now, but respondents far underestimate the real number of people experiencing poverty in America (they said 1-2 million poor people; the actual number is 34.6 million).

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=101-01122004

3. SOCIAL ILLS LIKE HUNGER AND FOOD INSECURITY ARE NOTORIOUSLY DIFFICULT TO MEASURE

(New York Times, January 11, 2004)

Before the release of the annual survey of homelessness and hunger by the U.S. Conference of Mayors in December 2003, the Heritage Foundation released its own report questioning the accuracy of the data presented in the survey on multi-year growth in hunger and homelessness. This article looks at the issue of measuring hunger and other social ills and attempts to get a real picture of what is going on without diminishing the attention given to the millions of Americans who need help getting enough to eat. Soup kitchen operators and food bank administrators, who were interviewed for the mayors' report, are always in the shadow of a shortfall and report an increase in demand. On the other hand, USDA's findings on food insecurity and hunger, which show that 11 percent of Americans are "food insecure" and 3 percent experience "food insecurity with hunger," are generally considered to be too low. According to Steve Brady, president of the Sodexho Foundation, which co-sponsored the Mayors' survey, "[the Mayors' survey] is certainly a clear indicator that the country as a whole is experiencing a problem."

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/11/weekinreview/11zell.html
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See FRAC's summary of the Mayors' report:
http://www.frac.org/html/news/mayors121803.htm

4. U.S. CATHOLIC BISHOPS SAY PRIVATE SECTOR, GOVERNMENT MUST IMPROVE EFFORTS TO COMBAT POVERTY

(Arlington Catholic Herald, Arlington, VA, December 18, 2003)

This article highlights a message by the U.S. Catholic Bishops entitled "A Place at the Table: A Catholic Recommitment to Overcome Poverty and to Respect the Dignity of All God's Children." The message says that the reduction of poverty rests on the efforts of four institutions: families and individuals, community and religious groups, the private sector and government. The article notes that the efforts of government and the private sector are in need of improvement. Over the past 20 years, the trend has been to reduce social programs designed to serve the poor and reduce the scale and power of government, leaving low-income people with an unsure safety net. "Hunger was a problem we came much closer to solving in the 1970s. Food stamps were more available, wages at the bottom were higher and there was less inequality," notes Jim Weill, president of FRAC.

http://www.catholicherald.com/rausch/rausch1218.htm

5. RECOVERY PERIOD JOB GROWTH FALLS FAR SHORT OF PRESIDENT BUSH'S PROJECTIONS

(Economic Policy Institute, January 2004)

President Bush projected that the tax cuts he proposed and Congress passed would help generate more than 1.8 million jobs between July and December 2003 --about 1.3 million jobs assuming normal 3 percent job growth projected by the Council of Economic Advisers, and 510,000 jobs generated directly by the tax cuts, or an average of 306,000 jobs per month. In fact, only 1,000 jobs were created in December 2003. In the six month period ending in December 2003, a total of 221,000 jobs were created. And despite substantial growth in GDP, workers' average wages were flat of falling slightly (after factoring in inflation) for the final quarter of 2003.

http://www.jobwatch.org/

6. EDITORIAL: DUE TO STAGNANT JOB GROWTH, CONGRESS SHOULD RENEW EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

(Los Angeles Times, January 14, 2004)

This editorial urges Congress to "immediately" renew extended federal unemployment benefits that were allowed to lapse in December 2003. While the tax cuts have helped boost the investment and finance sectors of the economy, the job market has remained stagnant. About 1.9 million workers, or 22.3 percent of the 8.4 million unemployed, have remained jobless for more than six months, and many people have stopped looking for work altogether. "Congress has abandoned these continued victims of a shrinking job pool. The economy has lost 2.4 million jobs since March 2001." The cost of enacted tax cuts is $272 billion --more than 20 times the annual cost of temporary unemployment benefits, which are usually spent right away for necessities, boosting the economy.

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-ed-employment14jan14,1,1039773.story
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7. ADVOCACY GROUPS PLAN VOTER-REGISTRATION DRIVE FOR LOW-INCOME WORKERS IN 2004

(Washington Post, January 14, 2004)

The Center for Community Change, along with several other advocacy groups, plans a voter-registration effort for the 2004 presidential election that aims to turn out two million low-income workers. "The goal is to bring low-income voices to the table of the policy dialogue and the national debate," said Leila McDowell of the Center. The groups plan to raise $15 million and target low-income workers in 30 states.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14291-2004Jan13.html

8. NATIONAL 4-H YOUTH GRANTS PROGRAM NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS

(National 4-H Council, January 2004)

National 4-H Council, with funding established by Kraft Foods, Inc. in partnership with Cargill, is offering grants of $7,500 to develop or expand innovative and fun programs that partner youth ages 5-12 with adults. The programs should help communities create educational programs and public awareness that will confront and reverse the climbing trends of obesity. Deadline for applications is January 23, 2003.

http://www.n4h.org/programs/main.asp?subid=6&catid=1

9. 2004 USDA COMMUNITY FOOD PROJECTS (CFP) COMPETITIVE GRANTS PROGRAM

(USDA, Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, January 2004)

The Community Food Projects (CFP) Competitive Grants Program provides approximately $4.6 million in grant funds that will be available in 2004. The Request for Applications is expected to be released on January 30, with proposals due April 14, 2004. The CFP Program supports projects that help meet the food needs of low-income people, increase the self-reliance of communities in providing for their own food needs, and promote comprehensive responses to local food, farm, and nutrition issues, and/or meet specific state, local, or neighborhood food and agriculture needs for infrastructure improvement and development, long-term planning, or the creation of innovative marketing activities that mutually benefit agricultural producers and low-income consumers.

http://www.reeusda.gov/crgam/cfp/community.htm

10. AUDIT OF DISASTER FOOD STAMP ASSISTANCE IN VIRGINIA FOLLOWING HURRICANE ISABEL FINDS NO FRAUD

(Times-Dispatch, Norfolk, VA, December 29, 2003)

A state audit of the Disaster Food Stamp Program that provided about $51.5 million in first-time food stamp aid for Virginia residents affected by power outages in the aftermath of Hurricane Isabel last September found no fraud. More than 145,000 residents applied for assistance through the program. The audit began in late October, and a state review team has pored over one percent of the applications.

http://makeashorterlink.com/?E27034717

11. MIAMI PUBLIC, PRIVATE LEADERS URGE COMMUNITY COOPERATION IN BATTLE AGAINST POVERTY

(Miami Herald, Miami, FL, January 7, 2004)

A coalition of social service, government, business and academic leaders in Miami-Dade County kicked off a community anti-poverty campaign called the Community Prosperity Initiative. The campaign aims to identify the causes of poverty and engage the public and private sectors in a search for solutions. At the press conference held at the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce headquarters to announce the campaign, Chamber president Pete Roulhac said that addressing poverty is good business. "Prosperity, when it is only shared by a few, insults everyone," he said. The campaign also will expand efforts to assist low-income residents in obtaining economic benefits, including food stamps and the EITC.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/7654377.htm

12. WAITING LIST FOR CHILD CARE PROGRAM IN KENTUCKY IS "SWAMPED" BY WORKING POOR

(Courier-Journal, Louisville, KY, January 11, 2004)

A state program that helps pay child care expenses for low-income workers now has a waiting list of 3,466 families, and Kentucky is facing "a crisis in affordable child care" that has been exacerbated by the many families who have left TANF but do not make enough money at their jobs to pay basic expenses. Viola Miller, former secretary of the Cabinet for Families and Children, says "[t]he issue is not welfare any more --the issue is poverty. She points to a University of Louisville study showing that only 36 percent of former TANF participants earned more than $8 an hour. According to Jennifer Weeber of the Hazard-Perry County Community Ministries, low-income people are being put in a position "where they are forced to choose between work to earn money to provide food and shelter and figure out where is a safe place for their children to be." The situation is worse because the state has reduced child care eligibility.

http://www.courier-journal.com/localnews/2004/01/11ky/wir-front-welfare0111-11540.html

13. ALASKA RECEIVES USDA GRANT TO HELP SCHOOLS START BREAKFAST PROGRAMS IN 2004-2005

(Anchorage Daily News, Anchorage, AK, January 10, 2004)

The Alaska Department of Education and Early Development's Child Nutrition Services program has been awarded a $269,464 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help schools start breakfast programs in the 2004-2005 school year. Alaska was ranked 43rd in the nation for School Breakfast Program participation, according to FRAC. The Department of Education will partner with the Alaska Parent Teacher Association, the Washington Dairy Council and the state Department of Health and Social Services to offer assistance in training personnel and solving problems that present barriers to starting breakfast programs.

http://www.adn.com/alaska/story/4605925p-4571027c.html
(Scroll down)

14. STATE LAWMAKERS CONSIDER LEGISLATION THAT WOULD LIMIT OUTSOURCING ON GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS

(Contra Costa Times, Contra Costa, CA, January 12, 2004)

California joins at least seven other states in considering legislation that would ban companies that use cheaper foreign labor from government contracts. In California, among other states, when food stamp recipients call a hot line for help with their electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards, they are routed to call centers in India or Mexico where staffers earn $2 to $4 an hour. Nationally, outsourcing for state and local government technology contracts is expected to grow from $10 billion in 2003 to $23 billion in 2008. Arizona-based eFunds Corp, which handles several state EBT contracts, including New Jersey's, placed a call center in an economically-depressed part of New Jersey in response to public pressure, and hired workers who were former TANF recipients.

http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/7690073.htm

15. EDITORIAL: INCREASING STAFFING AND IMPROVING SERVICES SHOULD BE KEY TO SOCIAL SERVICE CHANGES

(Baltimore Sun, Baltimore, MD, January 7, 2004)

This editorial acknowledges that change --in the form of increased staffing and improved services-- is needed at the Baltimore Department of Social Services, but questions whether the proposal to consolidate branch offices will help. While the "one-stop shopping" aspect for public assistance benefits could help clients, "[i]t could turn out, for example, that once staff members are better connected by computer and phone, all the offices could become 'one-stop' centers for the same net cost." In addition, the proposed consolidation of social service offices could result in fewer workers to do neighborhood outreach.

http://www.sunspot.net/news/opinion/bal-ed.dss07jan07,0,7300932.story?coll=bal-opinion-headlines

16. 64 PERCENT MORE MICHIGAN CHILDREN RECEIVE SCHOOL LUNCHES VERSUS A DECADE AGO

(Detroit News, Detroit, MI, January 8, 2004)

The number of students participating in the free and reduced price school lunch program has increased by 64 percent since the 1989-1990 school year in Michigan. The jump in participation is attributed to the change in the state's economic climate and relatively small gains made by low-income families through the boom years of the late 1990s. "Even at the peak of the economic boom, there was relatively small improvements families actually made moving out of that marginal poverty status," said Jane Zehnder-Merrel, senior researcher at the Michigan League of Human Services.

http://www.detnews.com/2004/schools/0401/08/c01-30264.htm