N.Y.ers ask Joe for more fed food aid

ALBANY — A coalition of New York lawmakers are calling on President-elect Joe Biden to address COVID-caused food insecurity by ramping up assistance programs.

The group sent a letter to the incoming Biden administration with requests and recommendations to strengthen the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program by upping the income eligibility level, allowing access to undocumented immigrants and scaling back Trump-era rules that have restricted benefits.

The effort is spearheaded by Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (D-Queens), Congresswoman Grace Meng (D-Queens), Sen. Roxanne Persaud (D-Brooklyn) and Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz (D-Queens).

In the letter, signed by more than 100 lawmakers, the coalition argues that “the number of New Yorkers who are going hungry is projected to increase from 2.2 million to 3.1 million of our constituents due to COVID-19. In the five boroughs, the number could double from 1.2 million to 2 million individuals.

“In addition to these most vulnerable of our constituents, millions of New Yorkers who are not classified as food insecure continue to come closer to the threshold, and face difficult decisions as budgets are strained from the economic fallout of the pandemic,” the letter states.

A report released last month by the Robin Hood Foundation found that 42% of New Yorkers surveyed said they often or sometimes ran out of food or were worried they would run out of food.

The group also reported that 32% of adults said they had used a food pantry at least once in the past year, an increase of more than 250% compared with prepandemic stats.

Lawmakers are calling on Biden to make a SNAP online purchasing pilot program permanent and amend the policy to permit benefits to cover hot food items.

They also want to see free school meal programs expanded, arguing that nearly a quarter of kids in the state don’t have access to nutritious food, and call on Biden to support $500 million for the Emergency Food Assistance Program food purchases to address the increased need for food assistance due to COVID-19.

“Emergency food providers need additional food to meet the unprecedented demand in communities nationwide,” they write.