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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Jenny Veloz, Policy Associate at Citizens Committee for Children of New York
3:11:33
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Jenny Veloz, representing the Citizens Committee for Children of New York, testified on food insecurity and hunger in NYC, highlighting the disproportionate impact on households with children and the need for continued support of food assistance programs.
- Emphasized the importance of Community Food Connection (CFC) program and applauded the council's budget response to increase and baseline CFC funding to $100 million.
- Recommended additional investments, including increased funding for Health Bucks and creating a $5 million food justice fund.
- Stressed that ensuring children and families are fed should not be a controversial issue requiring annual advocacy.
Jenny Veloz
3:11:33
Thank you deputy speaker Ayala and the members of of the committee on general welfare for holding today's oversight hearing on food insecurity, and hunger.
3:11:41
My name is Jenny Veloz.
3:11:42
I'm a policy associate at Citizens Committee for Children of New York.
3:11:46
And since 1944, CCC has served as an independent, multi issue children advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring every New York child is healthy, housed, safe, and educated.
3:11:58
Low income households continue to struggle with the high cost of not only food, but housing, child care, transportation, and utilities.
3:12:06
According to the state controller's May twenty twenty four report on food insecurity, households with children experienced the highest rates of food insufficiency when compared to households without children.
3:12:17
In 2022, '16 percent of households with children experienced food insufficiency.
3:12:22
Although that number decreased to fifteen point one percent in 2023, it was still higher than the ten percent of households without children.
3:12:30
With New York City potentially losing 870,000,000 a year if proposed federal snap cuts go into effect, it's even more important to invest in the resources necessary to alleviate food insecurity among children and families.
3:12:43
Programs like Community Food Connection are a vital resource for families needing that extra help in accessing healthy food options.
3:12:50
CFC and other food initiatives play a crucial role in ensuring families have the nutrition and supports that they need.
3:12:57
So we applaud the council's budget response of including increased funding for community food connections to a hundred million dollars and baselining that funding.
3:13:06
We also recommend the following investments, increasing funding for free health bucks and creating a $5,000,000 food justice fund.
3:13:15
And I just want to say I think we can all agree that making sure that children and families are fed should not be controversial issue and we should not have to advocate every year for funding to make sure that New York City's children and families are fed.
3:13:30
So thank you.