Food Pantries and Soup Kitchens Would Receive 24% Boost; Advocates Hail Governor for “Leading with Both His Head and His Heart”

Governor Eliot Spitzer’s first budget proposal, released today, calls for a 24% increase in the main source of State government funding for New York State’s more than 2,000 charitable food pantries and soup kitchens.

Governor Spitzer’s proposal would raise funding for the State Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program (HPNAP) by $5.5 million, from the level of $22.84 million proposed last year by then-Governor George Pataki to a new level of $28.34 million. If adopted by the Legislature, Spitzer’s proposal would provide HPNAP with $3.9 million (13%) more than the peak level of program funding of five years ago.

In response to this proposal, Joel Berg, Executive Director of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger, an umbrella group for the more than 1,200 pantries and kitchens based in the city, said the following:

“We are delighted by this proposal. Governor Spitzer understands that good nutrition not only reduces the suffering of low-income New Yorkers, it improves their educational performance, enhances their long-term health, and boosts their economic productivity. By calling for this long-overdue funding increase for feeding charities, Governor Spitzer is leading both with his head and his heart. We hope the Legislature provides at least as much funding as he proposed.”

“In the five years since HPNAP funding was last increased, the number of people served by such charities has soared statewide while the costs of food and other program expenses have increased greatly. Thus we hope that a funding increase this year will only be a down payment on further program increases if the need is still growing in the future.”

“Moreover, we continue to make the point that food pantries and kitchens should not be the State’s primary, long-term response to hunger and poor nutrition. Rather, we hope the State adopts a plan to ensure that more low-income New Yorkers are able to obtain and keep living wage jobs that enable them to earn enough to purchase all the food they need. We also continue to highlight the importance of reversing the State’s grave under-participation in federally-funded nutrition safety net programs such as food stamps and school breakfast. We are heartened that the Governor’s budget documents did reinforce the importance of work supports such as food stamp benefits.”