For Immediate Release: Tuesday, April 21, 2020
Letter spearheaded by Councilmember Will Jawando seeks aid for food banks and nonprofit providers to meet unprecedented and unrelenting demand for food assistance
ROCKVILLE, Md., April 21, 2020—Today the Montgomery County Council sent letters to Montgomery County’s Federal and State Delegations along with Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, requesting additional funding to help ensure food security for Montgomery County residents. The Council asked each one to make food security a priority in federal and state stimulus and emergency relief legislation associated with Covid-19. Local food banks and nonprofit providers providing food assistance in the County, like others around the nation, are stretched far beyond their normal capacity because of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the timeline for recovery efforts remains uncertain.
The letter was initiated by Councilmember Will Jawando and was signed and supported by the entire Council. It specifically calls on Governor Hogan and the state and federal lawmakers and agencies to implement the following initiatives: a fifteen percent increase in supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to help families buy groceries; direct payments in the form of Flexible Emergency Assistance Grants to states in order for food banks to be able to purchase more food and offset rising Covid-19-related costs; activation of Disaster-SNAP, which would provide enhanced eligibility to residents who may not otherwise qualify for food benefits; further relaxation of SNAP and Federal Nutrition Program guidelines; temporary universal deduction for charitable donations; and the creation of a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant application that would allow restaurants nationwide to be reimbursed at a predetermined amount per meal served.
The letter notes that local food providers in the County have experienced an increase of between 75 and 500 percent in clients, as families struggle with lost income, medical expenses and other challenges created by the nationwide public health emergency. It notes that, although the pandemic has likely not yet reached its peak, local providers are already struggling with limited means in the face of sharply increased need.
On March 31, the Council approved a $260,000 special appropriation to support the efforts of Manna Food Center in addressing the increasing levels of food insecurity of children and families due to Covid-19 related school closures and economic impact. The Council also has appropriated funding to provide personal protective equipment and face coverings to front-line food assistance workers (including Montgomery County Public Schools meal providers), among others, and made $25 million available to local small businesses via its Public Health Emergency Grants program, including $10 million for restaurants and front-facing retail stores.
You can read the Council’s letter here.
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Release ID: 20-166