The pandemic-era boost to federal food aid is scheduled to end soon, but legislation in Olympia aims to help fill the gap in hunger relief. The emergency allotments for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, increased food assistance during COVID-19 but will expire in March. House Bill 1784 in the Washington State Legislature would provide $28-million in food aid as soon April, if it passes.

Jake Garcia, public policy manager for Northwest Harvest said the end of emergency allotments will mean drastic cuts in aid for vulnerable populations.

"It's going to hurt folks who are seniors and people with disabilities the most, and so they'll actually go from receiving $218 a month to about $23 a month in basic food benefits," he said. "So, it's a cliff."

The bill in Olympia would allocate funds for hunger-relief organizations and programs for older Washingtonians and create incentives for fruit and vegetable purchases for low-income Washingtonians. It had a public hearing on Monday and is scheduled for an executive session on Thursday.

Mike Cohen, executive director of the Bellingham Food Bank, said people are in need, and that will increase once emergency allotments for SNAP end. He added when other pandemic benefit programs started winding down in 2022, the change was significant.

"We really saw a sharp spike in shopper visits to our food bank that we were not prepared for," Cohen said. "We thought we might get busier but we doubled our weekly number of visits and continue to hold that pace, and it's growing."

Garcia said Washingtonians are struggling with high food prices, too, and urged lawmakers to consider people's lived experiences with hunger, adding the local conversations about families are more dire than those happening in the Capitol.

"The conversations at dinner tables is, 'Hey, we don't have milk. We don't have eggs. We don't have the staples.' It's a radically different conversation, and I think that's something is getting lost on some of our legislators in Olympia," Garcia said.

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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