Mar. 4, 2025 By Jada Camille Rising food costs are eating a hole in New Yorkers’ budgets and driving them into debt, a new poll released Tuesday found. No Kid Hungry New York unveiled alarming statistics about the financial and health struggles residents are facing due to the skyrocketing food costs. The survey, which…
March 3, 2025 By Shane O’Brien Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas joined fellow lawmakers and anti-hunger groups in Albany on Tuesday to call for a state budget that addresses New York’s hunger crisis by increasing minimum SNAP benefits and funding healthy school meals for all students, among other initiatives. González-Rojas joined Assembly Members Michaelle Solages, Catalina… Read more »
Feb. 18, 2025 By Shane O’Brien Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas joined advocates and fellow legislators at a rally urging the passage of legislation to combat SNAP fraud by creating a victims’ compensation fund and transitioning New York State to chip-enabled EBT cards. González-Rojas, who represents New York’s 34th District—including Astoria, Corona, East Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, and Woodside—has long advocated for… Read more »
Dec. 30, 2024 By Shane O’Brien Queens Council Member Sandra Ung partnered with a local nonprofit organization to provide relief to elderly victims of a benefits scam that left them without essential resources ahead of the holiday season. Ung partnered with the Met Council, a Jewish nonprofit organization dedicated to combating poverty, to deliver…
Oct. 2, 2024 By Iryna Shkurhan A Flushing city council member is calling on Congress to extend a vital program that reimburses stolen Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, tackling a widespread issue impacting residents both locally and across the country. Council Member Sandra Ung co-introduced a resolution on Sept. 26 to allow the government…
Mar. 26, 2024 By Czarinna Andres Queens Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas is spearheading a campaign, alongside a coalition of business, public health, and agricultural advocacy groups, urging Gov. Kathy Hochul to increase the minimum benefit of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to $100 in New York’s fiscal year 2025 budget. The coalition’s push follows the Senate’s budget proposal for a minimum benefit of $50 per month and is made up of notable entities such as the Business Council, Instacart, the New York State Association for Rural Health, AARP, American Farmland Trust and the National Supermarket Association. This initiative is rooted…
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Jan. 5, 2024 By Ethan Marshall A new report from the state’s Department of Health found that 30.9% of Queens adults — the second-highest percentage among the five boroughs — self-reported that they were “always, sometimes or usually worried or stressed about having enough money to buy nutritious meals in the past 12 months.” Only the…
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Nov. 17, 2023 By Iryna Shkurhan More than 50 informal caregivers took a break from their responsibilities for a mix of education and fun at a caregiver conference hosted by Services Now for Adult Persons (SNAP) on Thursday, Nov. 16 at Bayside’s Marabella restaurant. Held annually during National Family Caregivers Month, the event allows caregivers…
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Sep. 11, 2023 By Carlotta Mohamed Flushing Councilwoman Sandra Ung is partnering with the Human Resources Administration and Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE) to host an upcoming event to help residents file claims to recover stolen SNAP and Cash Assistance benefits. On Wednesday, Sept. 13, members of the Department of Social Services (DSS) Outreach Team will be at AAFE’s Flushing office, located at 133-29 41st Ave., from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. to assist people with filing their benefit replacement claim. Ung says she has heard from a number of her constituents who have had their benefits stolen, but suspects…
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Jun. 14, 2023 By Ethan Marshall State Senator John Liu and Assemblywoman Nily Rozic on June 13 announced at the Food Emporium in Fresh Meadows the passage of their legislation that would require local businesses to post-consumer warnings of potential skimming of SNAP EBT cards. They were joined in their announcement by community organizations, the…
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