Tomorrow, new federal provisions to the Food,
Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 will go into effect. These new provisions
will, among other things, increase the minimum amount of food stamp benefits and remove
the cap on the dependent care deduction, which means that the true costs of
caring for children, the elderly or other dependents will now be considered in
the calculations for food stamps. This means some working families who pay
high child care costs could on average receive almost $500 a year in additional benefits according to the
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Betsy Gotbaum stood yesterday at the West Side Campaign Against Hunger with advocates (including the New York City Coalition Against Hunger, the Urban Justice Center, and the Food Bank for New York City) to raise awareness about improvements in the food stamp program and encourage New Yorkers, particularly immigrants with children, to apply. More.
Check out the Urban Justice Center 2008 Report on food stamp access in immigrant communities (pdf) for more information.
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