Over half of New York City food stamp applicants are forced to wait for their benefits to arrive as staff at the understaffed Human Resources Administration fail to keep pace with demand. The state’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance has declined to issue a waiver that would relieve the backlog.
The city’s Human Resources Administration (HRA) failed to promptly process four of every 10 applications for the benefits during fiscal year 2022, when the rate of timely processing plummeted from about 92 percent in fiscal year 2021 to just over 60 percent.
“Many food management companies and producers of color are small to mid-sized, and we have benefited from the added flexibility in the way schools negotiate. The waivers have allowed us to retain staff and pay an honest living wage and continue buying fresh produce while serving scratch-made meals to a larger student body.”
The pandemic worsened the hunger crisis for many New Yorkers, though more severe impacts were staved off by COVID relief programs. But need is expected to rise again, as government benefits expire, and the state’s eviction moratorium ends in January.
‘We know how to reduce food waste, we just need to find the will to do it.’
‘If our most affluent public school families choose to donate the value of their P-EBT card, New York City charities could reap as much as $150 million.’
A top nutrition advocate says the pandemic exacerbated a significant hunger crisis in the city. And a year later, it is still exacerbating it—although the federal stimulus package will deliver help.
Candidates for NYC mayor and other posts continued to publish big ideas for the city’s problems, including hunger, transit, gun violence and a pitch for universal childcare for kids as young as one.
‘Crossing this milestone is bittersweet – a mark of what the government and civic sector can accomplish…but also a sad reminder that too many people were hungry before this crisis exacerbated the situation, and too many are still hungry today.’
‘We need a clearheaded new approach, based on the reality that the majority of struggling Americans could climb out—and stay out—of poverty, but only with significant help.’
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