As we all settle in to be with our families this Thanksgiving, we are humbled to remember that many children and their families will have little to be thankful for and little food on the holiday table. In fact, for far too many children in the U.S., a school lunch is the only meal they can regularly count on. I've cosponsored a bill that would reduce the number of children who go hungry by helping eligible families get Food Stamp benefits, which would allow them to buy nutritious food at their local grocery stores. This Thanksgiving, amidst one of the greatest economic expansions in our nation's history, nearly four million people will have turkey dinner in a soup kitchen or emergency shelter. Many are working poor families with children, who play by the rules and still cannot make ends meet.
More people go hungry in Texas than in any other state.
Approximately 1.04 million people do not receive proper nutrition. This is a national problem, but one each Texan should be concerned about. The U.S. General Accounting Office recently concluded that the drop in Food Stamp participation could not be fully explained by rule changes or the good economy. Instead, GAO concluded that lack of information, difficulty getting to state offices, and confusion about welfare reform were all key factors. Our food banks do a great job, but the Food Stamp program is supposed to provide nutrition assistance to low income working families, so they can spend time with their families and the food banks can continue their missions to deal with short term emergency situations.