Practice

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy Child Nutrition Program Reauthorization The House Committee on Education and Labor passed H.R. 1850 out of committee on July 27, 2022. The reauthorization package is now eligible to be heard on the House floor, but an exact timeline is not clear at this point. The […]

by Eric Barr, SNAP Outreach Coordinator Oklahoma is a very military-friendly state. It offers tax exemptions, employment services, tuition assistance, and other perks to active-duty military and veterans. Despite the favorable policies, out of Oklahoma’s 20,000 active-duty troops, one in four participate in SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), and roughly 21,000[1] of the 310,000 veterans […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy Child Nutrition Program Reauthorization The House Education and Labor Committee Chairman Rep. Bobby Scott introduced legislation last week to modernize childhood anti-hunger programs through H.R. 8450, the Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act. Though H.R. 8450 still needs to move through the legislative process, this represents […]

by Bailey Ashbaker, Senior Policy Analyst and Engagement Specialist Even though Native communities experience high rates of hunger and poverty, Native Americans are severely underrepresented in data and discussions about food security (1). Thirty-nine formally recognized Tribes exist in Oklahoma today, and they play important roles in the state’s economic, political, cultural, and structural development. […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy Child Nutrition Program Waivers Congress took an important step last week to combat childhood hunger with the announcement of a long-awaited agreement to extend child nutrition waivers. The bipartisan Keep Kids Fed Act by Senate Committee on Agriculture Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Ranking Member John Boozman […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy 2022 Legislative Session Regular Session: The regular legislative session adjourns this week. The legislature completed their work on the budget last week and sent the budget bills, along with many additional bills, to the governor’s desk. Below is a brief update on a couple of […]

by Abby Stainer, Regional Program Manager The Oklahoma Childhood Food Security Coalition’s 2022 Summer Meals Kickoff is officially in the books. Thank you to all participants and presenters! The educational and inspiring four-part virtual series took place on the fourth Thursday of the month from January through April, averaging more than 60 attendants per session […]

by Leslie Young, Double Up Oklahoma Program Manager According to the United States Department of Agriculture, fifteen percent of Oklahoma households are food-insecure. It’s a staggering percentage, a number that represents the more than 600,000 Oklahomans that don’t have the means or access to adequate food. There are various temporary and permanent reasons for food […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy 2022 Legislative Session The state legislative session will adjourn in the next month. There are approximately 1,000 bills (down from about 5,000) still moving through the process following the recent legislative deadlines. An average of about 19% of bills filed ultimately make it to the […]

by Eugenia Chow, Richard Comeau, Jessica Dietrich, Matthew McClure, Katie Raymond, Devin Schroeder, and Taz Shah More than 1 in 5 children in Oklahoma experience food insecurity, meaning they lack adequate nutrition to learn and grow to their fullest potential. Hunger Free Oklahoma (HFO) and partners are committed to ensuring more children are fed more […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy 2022 Legislative Session The state legislative session is almost at the halfway point, with the second major deadline this week. There are approximately 1,400 bills (down from about 5,000) still moving through the process following the first committee hearing deadline. About 19% of bills filed […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy 2022 Legislative Session Legislative session is now underway, with both chambers primarily focused on committee work through March 3. Legislators requested a total of 3,019 bills ahead of this legislative session. New bill requests, combined with carryover bills from the 2021 legislative session, means there […]

by Sarah Smith-Moore, Hunger Outreach Program Specialist Food is a basic need that every human being deserves but it is also more than that. Food nourishes our bodies, connects us to our families, our neighbors, and our community. We often gather around a table of food for many reasons: holidays, hardships, birthdays, or a night […]

by Chris Bernard, Executive Director 2021 did not play out in the manner many of us had thought or hoped it would at the beginning of the year. While we were able to get back to some degree of normalcy for part of the year, it was not long until new variants brought about the […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy 2022 Legislative Session This week is the bill filing deadline ahead of the 2022 legislative session which begins in just a few short weeks. Legislators requested a total of 3,019 bills ahead of legislative session. New bill requests, combined with carryover bills from the 2021 […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy, and Bailey Ashbaker, Senior Policy Analyst and Engagement Specialist Chris Bernard Testifies Before House Rules Committee In case you missed it, our Executive Director, Chris Bernard, was invited to testify at a congressional roundtable along with four other experts from across the nation as part […]

Chris Bernard, Hunger Free Oklahoma’s executive director, was invited to testify at a congressional roundtable, along with four other experts from across the nation, as part of an effort to examine the issue of hunger in rural America. The roundtable, Ending Hunger in America: Food Insecurity in Rural America, was the twelfth event in a […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Policy & Government Relations Manager and Bailey Ashbaker, Senior Policy Analyst and Engagement Specialist Announcing the LOCAL Coalition Hunger Free Oklahoma, in partnership with the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy, recently formed the Lift Oklahoma Communities, Agriculture, and Lifestyles (LOCAL) Coalition. The coalition is advocating for a state investment to expand access […]

by Chris Bernard, Executive Director In reflecting on HFO’s five years of work and thinking of how to best sum it up for the newsletter, I struggled. Listing accomplishments and impacts is a perfectly reasonable approach, after all, we have many accomplishments to be proud of – as an organization and as a member of […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Policy and Government Relations Manager Oklahoma has some of the poorest health indicators in the nation, ranking 45th overall according to the United Health Foundation’s America’s Health Rankings 2020 report. The same report ranks Oklahoma 49th in fruit and vegetable consumption and 46th in household food security. There is a significant body […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Policy & Government Relations Manager Pandemic EBT Update Oklahomans are continuing to receive P-EBT benefits from the 2020-2021 school year. The Oklahoma State Department of Education Parent P-EBT review form is now open at this link. Parents should complete this form if they: Have not yet received their P-EBT card Need to […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Policy & Government Relations Manager School Year 2020-2021 Pandemic EBT Update Last week the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, in partnership with the Oklahoma State Department of Education, began issuing P-EBT benefits from the 2020-2021 school year. These benefits provide critical relief to Oklahoma families working to stretch their grocery budget while […]

by Candace Pape-Macedo, Senior Manager of SNAP Programs No Kid Hungry and Hunger Free Oklahoma are partnering to expand the Oklahoma SNAP in Schools project. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) allows eligible individuals and families to stretch their grocery budgets each month. Despite its proven ability to improve household food security, SNAP is underutilized […]

by Jessica Dietrich, Policy & Government Relations Manager USDA updates the Thrifty Food Plan, the basis for SNAP benefits Last week, the USDA made the first significant updates to the Thrifty Food Plan since 1975. The update, originally directed through the 2018 Farm Bill, takes effect October 2021. The Thrifty Food Plan, which serves as […]