Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the connection between unemployment, poverty and food insecurity has been clear. One of the best indicators of food insecurity is poverty. At the end of 2019, Missouri’s food insecurity rate was 12% while its poverty level was 13.2%, both above the national average. At that point, according to...Read More

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, lots of rule changes and new waivers have taken place within the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, commonly known as food stamps). Empower Missouri is grateful for the Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), as well as our federal delegation...Read More

(Jefferson City, MO)……..Empower Missouri today applauded Congress for their passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES) in a bipartisan and speedy fashion and President Trump for signing it. While the $2 Trillion package includes many provisions that will help Missourians affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, we believe more is still needed...Read More

As a statewide advocacy organization, Empower Missouri is keeping an eye on what the state is doing or not doing regarding the issues we work on as they relate to the COVID-19 pandemic. As Empower Missouri has always done, we continue to work in coalition around these issues and advocate for evidence-based public policy wherever...Read More

TANF, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, is a federal cash assistance program for low income families with children that provides for basic needs. Families who qualify receive money on a debit-like card that they can use to help cover their monthly expenses, like food, rent, clothing, and transportation. TANF’s History In 1911, a version...Read More

Our core belief around hunger is very, very simple – you cannot have life or liberty or be allowed to pursue happiness if you are unsure of where your next meal comes from. Our communities cannot be strong if there are food-insecure members living in them. Nourishment, the simple act of being able to feed...Read More

On Nov. 27th, 2019, Empower Missouri submitted a comment to the U.S. Department of Agriculture regarding their proposed change to how SNAP benefit allocations are calculated. Please use the link below to download or view our comment. Empower Missouri USDA Comment – State Heating and Cooling Standard Utility AllowancesDownloadRead More

Hunger is not a partisan issue. This is one of the messages that was interwoven throughout the Building Blocks for Missouri's Success Conference that was held last weekend in Columbia. It was a conference full of hope and plans of action to move us forward in our fight against hunger in our state!Read More

I have been learning about and advocating on safety net programs since I started at Empower Missouri 13 years ago, but have never really learned the history and inner workings of the TANF program.Read More

We learned about successful campaigns to increase benefit levels, create child support pass throughs, add a diaper or toiletries allowance, or end a flawed policy like the “family cap” in some states.Read More