In 1996, Congress passed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), sometimes known as the welfare reform bill. Buried deep within that sweeping legislation was a provision that hardly received any debate, but has had lifelong implications for millions of Americans. This provision imposed a lifetime ban on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program...Lee mas

As Joseph Llobera from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities stated in his report Child Support Cooperation Requirements in SNAP Are Unproven, Costly, and Put Families at Risk, “both the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) and the Child Support program improve the health and well-being of millions of low-income children every...Lee mas

This special Weekly Perspective is a collaboration between MO Jobs with Justice Organizing Director Richard Von Glahn and Empower Missouri’s Policy Manager Christine Woody.  During his state of the state, Governor Mike Parson recommended a long overdue 5.5% cost of living adjustment for all state employees as well as a new minimum wage of $15...Lee mas

I’ve been with Empower Missouri nearly 4 years now, and since I started every legislative session we work against work hour tracking for SNAP. It feels almost like a bad cartoon at this point, as we go ‘round and ‘round on the same issue: Work Requirements. On the surface it may sound good, individuals who...Lee mas

Early in the COVID-19 public health crisis, Congress passed specific SNAP related provisions and waivers to help struggling families put food on the table. These changes halted recertification interviews, gave families the maximum benefit amount for their family size, and increased that maximum benefit by 15%. This is all because the global pandemic has changed...Lee mas

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is one of the most far reaching, anti-poverty programs in our country.  Over 42 million individuals are helped each month by the support SNAP provides. Last week, The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released the 2021 Thrifty Food Plan Report. Within that report, they announced that they are...Lee mas

Empower Missouri and its Food Security Coalition applaud this week’s announcement that a long overdue federal increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits will be taking place on October 1. On Monday, the USDA released a report in which they re-calculated the Thrifty Food Plan, the calculation used to set benefit levels for SNAP,...Lee mas

Ahora que la sesión legislativa de Missouri ha terminado (lea el blog de conclusión de la sesión legislativa de MO AQUÍ y únase a nosotros el viernes 4 de junio a las 12 p.m. para nuestro evento de conclusión de la sesión legislativa registrándose AQUÍ), es hora de dirigir nuestros esfuerzos de promoción hacia Washington DC. En los próximos meses habrá muchas oportunidades ...Lee mas

PARA SU PUBLICACIÓN INMEDIATA 19 de abril de 2021 (JEFFERSON CITY, MO)… Empower Missouri y su red de seguidores en Missouri se unirán a una Semana de Acción coordinada del 19 al 22 de abril en Zoom esta semana, exigiendo que los legisladores estatales apoyen una legislación que ayude Los habitantes de Misuri tienen comida, refugio y justicia. Las acciones incluyen luchar contra ...Lee mas

No hace mucho que dejamos atrás el año 2020. Fue un año lleno de importantes eventos que cambiaron el mundo, ya que nuestro país y los habitantes de Misuri se enfrentaron a una de las pandemias mundiales más inesperadas y devastadoras en más de 100 años. Hasta la fecha, el virus transmitido por el aire, también conocido como "Covid-19", ha matado a millones de personas en ...Lee mas