State can take steps now to help families with food insecurity
Ensuring all students have healthy free school meals at school is one of the most important steps New York can take to curb food insecurity. Federal nutrition programs like SNAP and the new Summer EBT also play a critical role. As state and local agencies implement these federal programs, they now have an opportunity to do even more to ensure that hungry families can get the food they need to thrive.
At least 13 percent of those eligible for SNAP don’t participate in the program and processing times are a huge barrier to participation. New York currently ranks near the bottom of states when it comes to timely processing. The state needs to invest more in systems and staffing to make sure families can get the benefits to which they are entitled.
Similarly, New York has taken the important step of opting in to Summer EBT, a new federal program that will provide additional food benefits to families with school-age children over the summer. But to ensure every eligible family participates, the state will need to identify students, distribute cards to accurate addresses on time and educate families about the program.
Programs like SNAP and Summer EBT can mean the difference between families having food on the table or not. New York needs to meet the moment and ensure they’re implemented well.
Julia McCarthy New York City The writer is a Senior Program Officer with the New York Health Foundation.
I am a student in my final semester of college, reaching out to express my growing concern for environmental issues, specifically plastic pollution. Plastic pollution is the invasion of plastic materials that negatively impact the environment.
Plastic manifests itself in numerous spaces including aquatic ecosystems, agricultural lands and city streets and is in the air that we breathe.
As I enter my post-graduate career, I intend to bring environmental awareness into my everyday habits as well as into the lives of others.
Since plastic has become one of the most convenient, inexpensive and widespread consumptions that has found its way into our everyday lives including our packages, bags, cups, utensils, bottles and many other consumer items, it is vital to address this issue immediately. Not only does plastic contain a number of toxic chemicals, but the harmful chemicals within plastic have been associated with illnesses due to the transmission of microplastics into the human body.
The only way to end this pollution is by reducing plastic production, meaning that the responsibility lies in large corporations and the people in power. The U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works must acknowledge this life-threatening plastic crisis and act.
The crisis has fueled my ambition to educate others on these issues, speaking to the core of environmental justice.
Violet Silberman Bennington, Vt.
increase of more than $30 million from the proposed state budget, including an additional $10 million for locally identified service needs, building on $122 million in new investments since the 2018-19 state budget and totaling $153 million after the current enacted state budget. The state budget includes many other areas that will benefit
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