[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 144 (Thursday, September 22, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H5805]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                             END HUNGER NOW

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I recently had the opportunity to visit 
and volunteer at the Philadelphia region's largest hunger relief 
center, Philabundance.
  Philabundance, a member of the Feeding America network of food banks, 
aims to drive hunger out of local communities with an eye toward 
eradicating hunger altogether. Each week, Philabundance serves 90,000 
people in the Philadelphia area through partnerships with 350 agencies 
and food distribution programs. Incredibly, last year alone, they 
distributed almost 30 million pounds of food to neighbors suffering 
from hunger and food insecurity in nine counties.
  I was impressed by the innovative strategies Philabundance employs to 
feed hungry people in its region. The Philabundance Community Kitchen 
equips those looking to reenter the workforce with valuable life and 
kitchen skills, while also providing meals to those in need.
  Philabundance also opened the Nation's first nonprofit grocery store 
called Fare & Square in Chester, a city that faced a serious economic 
downturn due to the loss of manufacturing jobs. Fare & Square provides 
affordable and healthy food to the community, as well as discounts to 
those who qualify.
  Food banks across our country like Philabundance and places like the 
Worcester County Food Bank and Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, 
which are both in my congressional district, do incredible work to 
reduce hunger in surrounding communities. They employ innovative 
strategies to fight hunger and increase access to nutritious food for 
our most vulnerable neighbors.
  But the truth of the matter is we know that food banks and our 
charitable organizations can't do it alone. Some in Congress have 
proposed cuts and other restrictions to our Federal antihunger and 
nutrition programs. We often hear from them that charities, not the 
government, should be responsible for eradicating hunger.
  Mr. Speaker, I agree that food banks and food pantries and other 
charitable organizations are incredible on-the-ground partners in our 
effort to end hunger. They are often the first line of defense in 
emergency situations. But charities cannot do everything. That is just 
a fact.
  Charities do face limitations. Many are small and only open on 
limited schedules. Most are run with the support of dedicated 
volunteers, some of whom have other full-time jobs. Often, these 
charities operate out of small places like basements or closets at 
houses of worship. Importantly, they rely on donations from members of 
the community as a primary source of food to distribute.
  Our charities are doing an incredible job on the front lines, but 
ending hunger will take a strong partnership between these 
organizations and Federal, State, and local governments. For our part, 
the Federal Government must continue to invest in our preeminent food 
and nutrition programs like SNAP, WIC, and The Emergency Food 
Assistance Program, known as TEFAP, just to name a few, and fight any 
attempts to cut or weaken them. TEFAP is especially important to our 
food banks, as they rely on this Federal funding to serve those in 
need.
  We know that strong Federal investments in these critical safety net 
programs reduce hunger, improve the diets of low-income households, and 
save billions of dollars in healthcare costs. So the next time any of 
my colleagues try to score political points by demonizing Federal 
hunger programs, I ask you to think of these programs and the impacts 
they are having on constituents in each of our districts. I urge you to 
visit local food banks and charities and see all the incredible work 
they are doing to reduce hunger in our communities. Ask these 
organizations how the Federal antipoverty programs support their 
efforts to bring food to those most in need.
  I urge all my colleagues to remember this fact:
  Today, in the United States of America, the richest country in the 
history of the world, over 42 million of our fellow citizens are 
hungry. They are kids, senior citizens, people who can't find work, and 
many people who are, in fact, working. They defy stereotypes. But all 
of them are our brothers and sisters, and we should care. We should 
absolutely do more than we are doing right now to end hunger in 
America.
  The Federal Government, working with charities and local partners, 
has, within its grasp, the power to end hunger now; what we lack is the 
political will. Let's at long last create the political will and 
guarantee that, in our country, no one ever has to struggle with food 
insecurity or hunger. We can end hunger now.

                          ____________________