Bush’s proposed 2007 budget will eliminate ‘CSFP’, a program that provides nearly 425,000 elderly poor people with a monthly supply of food. Contact your Senators and tell them to FUND CSFP for 2007.
The USDA’s Commodity Food Supplemental Program (CSFP) provides monthly boxes of food to impoverished elders, mothers, and children. The Food Research and Action Center’s budget action alert shows that 90% of CSFP recipients are elderly poor who will lose their monthly box of groceries if CSFP is eliminated.
The Bush Administration plans to eliminate CSFP in 2007, and move CSFP recipients to Food Stamps. In some states, this will result in people ‘falling between the cracks’ -- both losing CSFP and being ineligible for Food Stamps. Contact your Senators and tell them to FUND CSFP.
I few days ago I posted a diary on the politics of hunger (Hunger: Not Pie-in-the-Sky), in which I challenged the Progressive Community to become more active in local food relief and in political action around food provision. Then Paul Ash's article (below) spurred me into action: The Bush administration plans to take a monthly box of groceries away from impoverished old folks.
Not on my watch. Or on yours, either, I hope. You can just take my word for it, and contact your Senators and tell them to FUND CSFP. Or, if you want to learn more, you can keep reading. (And, if you want to get to the meat of the issue, scroll down -- I'm going to talk about activism first.)
Folks, I appologize that what I am presenting here is not in polished form Below you will find my rough notes,with links and my questions interspersed. You can follow the links to learn more. But here's what I have done locally with this info, in its current form --
Three local media contacts:
(1) Our local volunteer-run radio station -- this is pending, I have to contact their News Director;
(2) emailed this to a newspaper columnist with whom I have a working relationship -- because I sent him similar emails pre-election, which resulted in several (anti-GOP position) opinion pieces and one good big article on political health care issues;
(3) Called, then sent info to, our local university's PBS station, to a reporter on local issues who had been thinking about reporting more on hunger issues.
Folks, I'm disabled, inpoverished, and largely homebound. But in less than 24 hours I created a local media issue around Bush's proposed elimination of CSFP. I'll keep you posted on how this develops. Now, on to the real issue -- telling your Senators to FUND SCFP.
Below is what I sent out today --
BushCo to Starve Seniors; Lugar Fights Food Cuts
Bush’s proposed 2007 budget will eliminate ‘CSFP’, a program that provides nearly 425,000 elderly poor people with a monthly supply of food. Contact your Senators and tell them to FUND CSFP for 2007.
The USDA’s Commodity Food Supplemental Program (CSFP) provides monthly boxes of food to impoverished elders, mothers, and children. According to the CSFP Factsheet, in 2002, 82% of the recipients were “elderly” -- over 60, with incomes at or below 130% of the poverty level. The Food Research and Action Center’s budget action alert shows that 90% of CSFP recipients are elderly poor who will lose their monthly box of groceries if CSFP is eliminated.
The Bush Administration plans to eliminate CSFP in 2007, and move CSFP recipients to Food Stamps. In some states, this will result in people ‘falling between the cracks’ -- both losing CSFP and being ineligible for Food Stamps.
“[F]or the past six years, the Bush administration has been cutting food-assistance programs, and in some cases, proposing to eliminate them. . . . the administration's 2007 budget aims to "zero out" the national Commodity Supplemental Food Program . . ..” Paul Ash, Executive Director of San Francisco Food Bank, in SF Chronicle Mon Nov 20 2006
The House has voted to fund CSFP for 2007, the Senate will vote soon. Senators Lugar (R-IN) and Stabenow (D-MI) are “leading the charge” to fund CSFP for 2007. Contact your Senators and tell them to FUND CSFP.
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Notes, quotes and links to key documents:
'My Stomach is Touching my Back' ;SF Chronicle Article (Mon Nov 20 2006) by Paul Ash, exec dir of SF Food bank; puts new USDA terms, BushCo rules into human terms
Quotes from Ash’s article --
“The USDA will now use the term "very low food security" to describe people who used to be considered "food insecure with hunger." Statistically speaking, hunger will no longer exist in America.”
“The release of the report, however, follows five straight years of increases in the number of Americans unable to afford the food they need.”
"To be fair, the USDA's point is not that hunger doesn't exist, but that this particular survey, the annual "Household Food Security in the United States," is designed to measure food security -- an economic and social condition related to limited or uncertain access to food. Hunger is a physiological condition.”
“Whatever you call the problem, the statistics are grim: 35 million people in America are living in food-insecure households.”
“The USDA's study classifies 11 percent of Californians as food insecure. In San Francisco, the rate is even higher. Based on U.S. Census data, 1 in 5 adults and 1 in 4 children in San Francisco face the threat of hunger.” [What are local numbers?]
“Yet for the past six years, the Bush administration has been cutting food-assistance programs, and in some cases, proposing to eliminate them. For example, the administration's 2007 budget aims to "zero out" the national Commodity Supplemental Food Program, which serves nearly 10,000 low-income seniors in San Francisco alone, and move these people to the Food Stamp program.
“There are two main obstacles to this working. First, seniors who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) are ineligible for Food Stamps in California - and almost all low-income seniors receive SSI. Additionally, a senior with just $3,100 in savings would be ineligible for Food Stamps but still qualify for the supplemental food program.
“The continued unraveling of our nation's food safety net, will mean that more elderly Americans will go to bed hungry, more working poor parents will have to choose between paying the rent or putting food on the table, and more children will perform poorly in school and be unprepared for productive work lives.”
Lugar, Stabenow oppose the cuts, seek support.
From the San Francisco Food Bank's 'Advocate' page --
The Program: CSFP (Commodity Supplemental Food Program) from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides a nutritionally balanced, food box to seniors with incomes below $1,000 a month. Each box costs the USDA approximately $15, yet has a retail value of almost $50. In 2005, the San Francisco Food Bank provided 10,500 seniors each month with these healthy CSFP boxes.
The Issue: Last spring the President tried to eliminate CSFP but your calls and letters paid off. The House of Representatives voted to fund the program and the Senate will vote soon. Two Senators, Senator Stabenow (D-MI) and Senator Lugar (R-IN) are leading the charge to fund CSFP and are asking their colleagues to sign-on in support.
[Action step: Call/write senators --] and tell them we must ensure that low-income seniors continue to have access to healthy food, support Senators Stabenow and Lugar, and fund CSFP at $118 million to prevent future cuts.
Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) legislative message - covers all upcoming food-related legislation/rules changes; below is portion on CSFP.
CSFP: The Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) provides USDA commodities to seniors 60 years or older and to some pregnant and postpartum women, infants and children up to 6 years old. Seniors currently comprise approximately 90 percent of participants and may participate in both the Food Stamp Program and CSFP. Participation in both CSFP and WIC is prohibited. CSFP currently operates in 32 states, the District of Columbia and two Indian Reservations. The President's proposal eliminates funding for CSFP, resulting in the loss of benefits to over 470,000 monthly participants.
CSFP Message [to legislators]: Protect CSFP by ensuring that the more than half a million low-income seniors, mothers and young children who are currently enrolled in this program continue to receive the nutritious food packages that supplement their diets.
CSFP fact sheet (3-pg pdf) -- my comments are in [square brackets]--
CSFP Factsheet is undated and does not show who produced it; however, it has the look of a Government-produced information document.
Notes, quotes and my questions about CSFP Factsheet --
CSFP Serves "senior citizens, pregnant women and postpartum mothers, infants, and children. . . . Participants receive a free box of
commodities up to once a month."
Seniors over 60, "who have income at or below 130 percent of the Federal
Poverty Income Guidelines." [What are guidelines for one? What is 130%?]
"Pregnant and breastfeeding women, mothers up to one year postpartum, infants, and children up to age six. Income eligibility for this population is determined by each state, but it is typically 185 percent of the Federal Income Poverty Guidelines. WIC participants are not eligible for the CSFP. However, because WIC only serves children up to 5 years of age, CSFP can “pick up” 5 year-olds who previously received WIC."
States can set further eligibility requirements. [What are our State requirements?]
In 2002, 82% or recipients were over 60 and living at or below 130% of poverty level. [Gripe: Why, in this day & age, are we still looking at old numbers? We have the technology for current numbers!]
"How does the Commodity Supplemental Food Program work?
Program administration varies from state to state. State agencies - generally departments of health, education, agriculture, or social services - receive administrative money and commodities from the USDA. Typically, the agencies then contract with public and non-profit organizations
(such as food banks, hospitals, and other charitable organizations) to distribute the commodities, determine eligibility, perform outreach, and provide nutrition education. Commodities are generally distributed at warehouses, food pantries, hospitals, or community organizations. Some
distribution sites deliver to participants who are unable to pick up the boxes themselves, because of age or disability."
[Flow of funds is from Federal to State -- then "administration varies from state to state.' Why -- this adds confusion. What state-level office administers CSFP here? How is CSFP distributed from State level to local areas (counties)? Who determines eligibility/provides food at local level? Does this vary by county? How are local residents made aware of the program? Update: per Exec Director of local Food Bank -- in IN, not all counties receive CSFP -- which counties receive is determined at State level. What are criteria? Why is whole state not covered?]
CSFP funding -- again, old numbers --
"In FY 2003, Congress appropriated $114 million for CSFP. This was an increase from $92.813 million in FY 2002. The appropriations cover both the food itself and administrative costs. Unspent funds can be carried over from year to year."
[Again, these are old numbers. We know that the number of people in poverty has risen dramatically since 2002. What is current (2006) funding level, and how many does it serve? What is proposed 2007 funding -- which Bush Admin is trying to eliminate?]
CSFP Factsheet has map showing which states have CSFP -- so states can opt out. States which do NOT have CSFP are: ID, WY, UT, HI, OK, AR, AL, GA, FL, VA, WV, ME, MA, RI, CT, NJ, DE, and DC. [ (Is this a 2002-2003 map?) 18 states -- several of which are known to have high populations of poor people. How are the poor fed in these states?]
States participating in CSFP are: AK, AZ, CA, CO, DC, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NV NH, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, WA, WI, Ogala Sioux Reservation (SD), Red Lake Reservation (MN).
Links for further research --
USDA FNS CSFP home page
USDA CSFP fact sheet
The National CSFP Association:
FRAC (Food Research and Action Center)