President’s Budget Proposes Investments in Children
Washington, D.C.–Bread for the World applauds the president’s proposed fiscal year 2017 budget, released yesterday, especially for the ways it proposes to address child hunger.
“The president’s budget would make important investments to help hungry children and ensure they are able to reach their full potential,” said Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World. “Bread for the World applauds the president’s continued leadership in addressing child hunger and hopes that Congress will pass legislation this year to strengthen child nutrition programs.”
The president’s $4.1 trillion budget request proposes new initiatives to combat child hunger in the U.S., including permanent improvements to programs that connect hungry children with meals during the summer months. The budget also increases funding for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and includes strong funding for food assistance programs such as SNAP (formerly food stamps) and the WIC program, which provides nutrition assistance to pregnant mothers and young children.
In addition to strengthening the safety net, the budget expands access to Head Start, early education, and job training programs, and strengthens the earned income tax credit (EITC) for working adults without children.
The budget request also represents a continuation of the administration's commitment to ending preventable deaths worldwide, but comes up short when addressing malnutrition. The request includes a $16.5 million cut to global nutrition programs. Congress must reverse this cut and increase funding for nutrition programs that are critical to ending preventable child deaths.
The budget includes $15 million for the USDA Local and Regional Procurement Program, which was authorized in the 2014 farm bill. Bread for the World encourages Congress to ensure as much flexibility as possible for vouchers and local purchases of food so that mothers and children overseas receive nutritionally appropriate food aid quickly and efficiently.
“Bread for the World calls on Congress to fund these proposals in upcoming budget negotiations,” added Beckmann. “Lawmakers should continue to build upon U.S. leadership in global nutrition, and increase funding for programs that enable mothers and children around the world to survive and thrive.”
Tools
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For Education
Election Resources
One of the best times to raise the issues of hunger and poverty is during election campaigns. Engage candidates in your state/district on hunger and poverty using our elections resources.Fact Sheet: Expand the Child Tax Credit to Significantly Reduce Child Hunger
Expanding the CTC would do more to reduce hunger and poverty among our nation's children than any single policy has in decades.Racially Equitable Responses to Hunger During COVID-19 and Beyond
Food insecurity and COVID-19 have a reciprocal relationship. Learn more.
For Faith
Finding Hope, Ending Hunger on Both Sides of the Border: A Bilingual Latino Devotional
Devotional writers challenge us to feel the Spirit of God within us and to hear God’s urgent call to demand justice so all can put food on the table.The Bible on Health as a Hunger Issue
“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in faith.” These words from Colossians 2:6 remind us of the faith that is active in love for our neighbors.
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Unity Declaration on Racism and Poverty
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For Advocacy
Fact Sheet: Coronavirus (COVID-19) and SNAP
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is designed to respond to changes in need, making it well suited to respond to crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fact Sheet: Why We Need $200 Million for Global Nutrition Programs
Bread for the World and its partners are asking Congress to provide $200 million for global nutrition in the fiscal year 2020 budget.
Fact Sheet: Hunger by the Numbers
In 2017, 11.8 percent of households in the U.S.—40 million people—were food-insecure, meaning that they were unsure at some point during the year about how they would provide for their next meal.