HB2091: Hunger relief in Arkansas

I'll be presenting HB2091 to Joint Budget soon, which appropriates $100,000 for hunger relief projects statewide.

Here are some Arkansas statistics that detail numbers on the segment of our society that can't afford enough food to keep their family alive. These figures are from www.census.gov and the 2004 American Community Survey.

- Over 17% of Arkansans live below the federal poverty line. That means that 1 in 6 of our neighbors struggles with making ends meet and providing enough food for their family. - ACS Survey

- Our childhood poverty rate is 25.9% compared to the national average of 18.4%. - ACS Survey

- 1 in 8 of our elderly citizens lives below the poverty line and has to choose between food and medicine. - ACS Survey

- Arkansas is ranked in the top 5 of most food insecure states.

- The regions in our state with the greatest prosperity will experience the greatest increase in poverty by 2010.

To read more about the Hunger Relief Alliance, click to read this 2006 report (Texarkana figures are on page six). You can read a more detailed report here, which includes needed resources that this bill addresses in order to feed thousands of Arkansas families in need.