Montgomery County Sees Dramatic Rise in Number of Children in Low-Income Families
PHILADELPHIA (December 4th, 2013) – PCCY’s latest report “The Bottom Line is Children: Economic and Food Security in Montgomery County” finds that more than 27,000 low-income children received food stamps (SNAP) in 2012, a 53 percent increase since 2008. Overall, children represent 40 percent of all individuals enrolled in the program.
Báo cáo cũng chỉ ra:
- The share of students eligible for free and reduced-price meals at school increased 35 percent from 2008-2012
- In all, 32,000 children live in low-income families, a 17 percent increase since 2008
- Only 18 percent of eligible low-income students received school breakfast in 2012
- Share of Families receiving Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) increased 18 percent from 2007 to 2011 while the number of families receiving the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) increased by 23 percent.
Hunger and food insecurity are proven to have lasting effects on a child. The value of increased poor educational outcomes and lost lifetime earnings as a result of hunger and food insecurity was $19.2 billion in 2010, according to the national report- Hunger in America, published by the Center for American Progress and co-authored by PCCY’s executive director.
Every school district except Lower Moreland Township saw a rise in the share of students eligible for free and reduced-price meals at school from 2008 to 2012, a clear sign that hunger and poverty is hitting families in all parts of the county. While the need rose, the number of children receiving breakfast at school remains low. County-wide, less than one in five eligible students received school breakfast in 2012.
“A child’s success in school starts with a good breakfast,” said Kathy Fisher, Family Economic Security Director for PCCY. “By connecting more children to school breakfast programs, we can ensure more children will perform better in the classroom.”
The dramatic rise in children receiving food stamps (SNAP) is causing more families to turn to outside agencies for help.
“We are seeing more families with small children who are faced with the difficult decision of paying bills or paying for food,” said Pat Druhan, Director of the Food Resource Center for CADCOM (Montgomery County Community Action Development Commission). “It is vitally important that everyone does their part to make sure Montgomery County children do not face these hardships.”
The share of Montgomery County families earning less than $45,000 a year remained unchanged from 2008 to 2012, meanwhile the cost of living- housing, food, utilities, health care and transportation continued to rise. Between 2007 and 2011, the share of families receiving the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) increased by 18 percent, while the number of families receiving the refundable portion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC) also increased, by 23 percent.
“For families with children, tax credits are lifesavers,” said Marianne Bellesorte, Vice President of Policy Strategy and Communications for PathWays PA. “This money supplements their income and can help parents support their children so they can grow.”
PCCY recommends that County officials, service providers, community groups, schools and parents work together to:
- Work with school districts and parents to dramatically increase participation in school breakfast, including pressing schools to enter the PA Department of Education’s School Breakfast Challenge, which rewards districts who achieve the highest gains in school breakfast participation (deadline is Dec. 20th).
- Mobilize county resources to educate local residents so that all eligible families can access federal safety net resources to help care for their children
- Build county-wide understanding and support for these programs so they are strengthened at the federal level.
PCCY’s report, “The Bottom Line is Children: Family Economic Security in Montgomery County,” is the latest in a four-part series looking at issues affecting children in each of Philadelphia’s suburban counties. PCCY’s previous reports on education can be viewed at www.childrenfirstpa.org/bottomlinecountyreports
Upcoming reports will focus on child health and early childhood education.
The full report “The Bottom Line is Children: Family Economic Security in Montgomery County” can be viewed online at https://www.childrenfirstpa.org/userfiles/file/BottomLineCountyReports/Montgomery/FamilyEco/PCCYBLFamilyEcoMontCo2013.pdf