February 28, 2009– President Obama’s FY 2010 budget proposal makes important new investments in federal programs that support food security and income security.

Child Nutrition
Congress is scheduled in 2009 to reauthorize the child nutrition programs (WIC, school lunch and school breakfast, summer and afterschool food, and the child care food program). These programs are miracles of good public policy, but they reach too few low-income children and the quality of nutrition in them needs to be improved. Further investments in these programs will allow them to more completely fulfill important national goals: feeding hungry children, boosting health and education, providing highly nutritious meals and snacks, and preventing obesity. The President’s proposal of $5 billion over five years in additional funds is a good step forward, but FRAC will be seeking added investments from Congress. By investing more in these programs, Congress and the Obama Administration can make a strong first step towards reaching the President’s goal of ending childhood hunger by 2015.

SNAP/Food Stamps
The budget supports the excellent nutrition provisions incorporated in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, including a temporary increase in SNAP/Food Stamp benefits and administrative support. The budget also proposes a badly-needed pilot initiative to increase SNAP/Food Stamp participation among low-income seniors, a group that traditionally has very low participation. It also promises to review asset tests for this and other programs, a move that could improve or eliminate outdated and counterproductive barriers to eligibility.

Other Key Programs
There are many other important steps in the President’s budget that will help address the needs of low-income individuals. FRAC particularly applauds the proposal to make permanent the recent improvements in the refundable Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit, and the extension of the Making Work Pay tax cut. These tax provisions will provide crucial income support to millions of moderate income and working poor families with children. One of the many positive outcomes of that will be increased food security.