It has been almost a year since New Hampshire families received the last monthly Child Tax Credit payment of a few hundred dollars, and their advocates say the result of stopping the payments has been alarming.

The families include some 217,000 children, and the number who report they "sometimes or often" did not have enough to eat in the previous week has increased by 50% in the past year.

Michael Reinke, executive director of the Nashua Soup Kitchen and Shelter, said the change has been dramatic.

"Running out of the things that are more expensive -- running out of meat, running out of milk, eggs -- those are the highest demand right now," Reinke observed.

Reinke noted requests for family food boxes are up 25% from this time last year. His organization is urging lawmakers to make restoring the Child Tax Credit a top priority. But the credit has faced headwinds from conservatives in Congress and some older Americans, who think it's too expensive.

The loss of the Child Tax Credit came as costs for food, fuel and nearly everything else have increased. Nearly half of New Hampshire adults with children say they found it difficult to pay their regular household bills in September, and more than 15% were behind in their rent.

It comes as no surprise to Reinke, who pointed out the majority of people he meets at the soup kitchen are working, sometimes at more than one job.

"You can be working full-time and still not be able to make all of your ends meet," Reinke emphasized.

Census data show when the Child Tax Credit was available, employment rose slightly more among people with children than those without. Other research has shown the extra aid helped improve children's health and education, especially as students struggle to regain learning lost during the pandemic.

Advocates for low-income workers say those gains are already being lost.

Cary Gladstone, area director for Granite United Way, which offers free income-tax assistance for people of low to moderate incomes, said the Child Tax Credit offers significant help to the average tax filer making roughly $28,000.

"And so, if you can imagine, the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit being added to that, I mean, that can mean a maximum of more than $10,000," Gladstone stressed. "A 40% increase in their overall income."

Gladstone added Granite United Way is encouraging lawmakers to revive the Child Tax Credit, and possibly include retroactive payments for families in need. With winter approaching and more calls requesting help to New Hampshire's 211 hotline, he said he hopes lawmakers get the message.

Groups working to end hunger in Nebraska are reaching out to all parts of the state to train food insecure people to advocate for others facing similar issues.

The advocacy group Nebraska Appleseed's Food Access Community Advocates Cohort educates people over nine months how to build advocacy, community organizing and storytelling skills, so they are better equipped to understand policies affecting the state's most food insecure people.

Megan Hamann, senior community organizer of food and nutrition access for Nebraska Appleseed, said having experienced hunger puts them in a better position to understand and talk about policy issues affecting hungry people in Nebraska.

"They have this lived experience that is really useful, I think, when it comes to making sure that our decision-makers know the impact of the policies they are considering," Hamann explained.

Nebraska Appleseed will start taking applications for new program participants Friday.

Hamann pointed out the number of food insecure people in Nebraska is greater now than it was during the pandemic, when demand at food banks was already high.

"I think with the passage of the recent federal budget reconciliation bill, we are looking forward to a period of time where that need is going to reach new extremes," Hamann projected.

This will be the fourth year of the cohort program. Many past participants have taken leadership roles in their communities and are now leading local efforts to educate others about the best ways to address food insecurity.


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It has been about three weeks since the Rowena Fire in Oregon's Columbia Gorge was put out, and the local food bank remains vital to recovery efforts.

The fire burned 3,600 acres in Wasco County, destroying 56 homes and 100 other structures.

Breen Goodwin, executive director of the Columbia Gorge Food Bank, said they are always prepared to assist during disasters with ready-to-eat emergency food boxes and water. She added many displaced families are living with relatives, in hotels, or camping and remain uncertain about their next steps.

"It is difficult in a community of our size to absorb housing needs for that many families who have lost homes," Goodwin acknowledged. "That next step of the recovery process of truly: 'How are those families being supported with more long term recovery efforts?'"

Breen pointed out the food bank has been serving as a distribution site to hand out supplies from Adventist Health of the Columbia Gorge and other organizations who donated nonfood items, including air purifiers, generators, hygiene supplies and stuffed animals for kids.

One of the biggest challenges, Breen noted, is keeping a supply of drinking water flowing once people start to return home.

"We're able to drop full pallets of water directly into the impacted communities because most of the time the drinking water is no longer safe until enough testing has been done," Breen explained.

The Columbia Gorge Food Bank is one of 21 regional food banks in the Oregon Food Bank Network. Breen emphasized the number of people visiting the food bank rose to about 6,500 per month during the pandemic and has remained at that level. People can visit OregonFoodFinder.org to find pantry locations in their area.

Indiana families are navigating the summer without SUN Bucks, a federal grocery benefit which delivered $120 per child last summer.

Gov. Mike Braun's administration chose not to participate in 2025, citing prior planning gaps.

Mark Lynch, director of advocacy for the Indy Hunger Network, said the funding blackout hit the state hard.

"We really are feeling and seeing the impacts of not having the SUN Bucks program this year," Lynch emphasized. "That $120 per summer for those students that they had last year have created some longer lines at our food pantries."

State leaders said administrative hurdles kept Indiana out of the program. Supporters argued skipping SUN Bucks puts pressure on food banks and leaves low-income families with fewer options.

Lynch noted to help bridge the gap, Indiana expanded its summer meal sites to include prepackaged meals, which do not require daily pickups.

"But there's school starting soon and they're giving their workers some time off for the summer, so that might be ending in the next week or two," Lynch explained. "That's just an example and that happens around the state in rural, suburban, and in city communities."

The Indy Hunger Network and other partners continue to support Hoosiers through tools like the Community Compass app, which shows nearby meal sites and grocery assistance programs.


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