DONATE NOW VOLUNTEER FIND FOOD MENU WHAT WE DO ADVOCACY Advocacy Host a Food Drive Feed Long Island Education Advocacy Youth Education Programs Youth Programs NEXT The Chapin Center for Public Policy is the advocacy wing of Long Island Cares. Regrettably, ending hunger is not something that food banks, despite their best efforts, can do on their own. To definitively end hunger and its root causes, we advocate for long-term public policy solutions at the local, state, and federal levels. THE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE CHAPIN CENTER ARE: Legislative Action. The Chapin Center for Public Policy mobilizes our staff, board of directors, agencies and clients around the issues of hunger and self-sufficiency. Activities include advocacy letters, signing petitions, providing legislative testimony, and serving on various public policy committees. Education. As Long Island’s regional food bank, we see food insecure people every day and must use our platform to illuminate the often hidden issue of hunger on Long Island. This is necessary to garner the public support needed for sustainable public policy solutions in the future. Activities include op-eds in local newspapers, social media platforms updates, and advocacy training sessions. Long Island Cares 2021 Legislative Priorities Agenda This annual document describes the legislative priorities and needs of not only our food bank, but also of our agencies and the clients we collaboratively support. It is carefully crafted and reinforces many of the legislative goals identified by Feeding America and Feeding New York State. Long Island Cares, Inc. is proud to be a member of both Feeding America and Feeding New York State. This year’s agenda primarily focuses on the governmental support needed to meet the staggering rise in food insecurity on Long Island as a direct result of the economic and health impacts of COVID-19. Since the onset of the pandemic, the number of food insecure Long Islanders has nearly doubled from 259,000 at the start of 2020 to more than 480,000 today. We are striving to keep pace but need continued commodity support to help the hungry on Long Island, which has essentially doubled in just one year. Read Now SPECIAL EVENTS The Chapin Center either hosts or participates in various special events publicizing hunger on Long Island and the creative, innovative responses taken by Long Island Cares to help. Activities include an annual legislative breakfast in our warehouse, attending the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) and Feeding America’s Anti-Hunger Policy Conference, roundtable discussions with legislators/community leaders, and press conferences to generate awareness on timely legislation. To find out how you can get involved in fighting against hunger on Long Island – and make a difference in the lives of thousands of your neighbors – contact Michael W. Haynes, Chief Government Affairs Officer, or call 631-582-3663 ext. 202. Find Your Legislators New York State Assembly Member Search Find My Senator Suffolk County Legislators Suffolk County Voter Information My Nassau Information Lookup Representatives (house.gov) Senators (senate.gov) Useful Advocacy Links https://www.feedingamerica.org/take-action https://frac.org/ https://feedingnys.org/ https://hwcli.com/work-we-do/policy-advocacy/our-advocacy/ https://twitter.com/licgovtaffairs?lang=en NEXT Youth Education Programs MAKE A DIFFERENCE Donate Now! Donate to Long Island Cares and help feed your neighbors in need. Contribute what you can, all donations are welcome CONTRIBUTE VOLUNTEER NOW We are always looking for motivated and generous people to lend us some of their time and help those in need. LET'S GO DONATE NOW VOLUNTEER FIND FOOD Who We Are What We Do How to Help Events News AGENCY SUPPORT CAREERS EN ESPAÑOL 631-582-FOOD Long Island Cares 10 Davids Drive (Harry Chapin Way) Hauppauge, NY 11788-2039 E: info@licares.org P: 631-582-FOOD (3663) F: 631-273-2184 EIN: 11-2524512 Long Island Cares is a 501(c)(3) registered charity PRIVACY POLICY CONTACT US ©2020 Long Island Cares Inc. TM, The Harry Chapin Food Bank. All rights reserved.