• Food stamp bills seek to restrict junk food, By Richard Fausset, January 29, 2012, Los Angeles Times: “Ronda Storms is a Republican state senator from Florida. She is also a mom who buys the groceries for her family of four. A few months ago, Storms, 46, started noticing that some fellow shoppers were using federal food stamp money to purchase a lot of unhealthful junk. And it galled her - at a time when Florida was cutting Medicaid reimbursement rates, public school funding and jobs - that people were indulging in sugary, fatty, highly-processed treats on the public dime. ‘If we’re going to be cutting services across the board,’ she said, ‘then people can live without potato chips, without store-bought cookies, without their sodas.’ That sense of unfairness, plus a concern about the health of needy children, is the motivation behind a bill Storms sponsored that would prohibit people from purchasing ‘nonstaple, unhealthy foods’ with funds provided by the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP…”
• No more treats with food stamps?, By Kathleen Haughney, January 31, 2012, South Florida Sun-Sentinel: “Should the state be able to prevent people from using food stamps to buy junk food at the grocery store? For Rep. Scott Plakon, R-Longwood, and Sen. Ronda Storms, R-Valrico, the answer is yes. The two lawmakers are sponsoring legislation - HB 1401 and SB 1658 - that would ban the use of food stamps to buy items such as soda and sweets like candy, cake or ice cream. ‘Should the taxpayer foot the bill for Mountain Dew?’ Storms asked the Senate Children, Families and Elder Affairs Committee last week. Said Plakon to the House Health and Human Services Access Subcommittee on Monday: ‘You can’t buy certain items in the grocery store right now with food stamps. We’re just talking about how big that list is.’ But the issue has ignited criticism, generating complaints even from Plakon’s and Storms’ GOP colleagues…”
• Brownback officials defend Kansas’ new food stamp policy, By Brad Cooper, January 31, 2012, Kansas City Star: “Gov. Sam Brownback’s administration on Monday fended off suggestions that it is trying to ferret out undocumented immigrants with a new Kansas policy that cuts food stamp benefits for anyone in the country illegally. Appearing before the House Appropriations Committee, a top official at the state social services agency said the new food stamp policy is only intended to level the playing field between U.S. citizens and illegal immigrants. Michelle Schroeder, the agency’s policy director, told the committee that the new food stamp policy is intended to eliminate discriminatory elements of the old policy. ‘We could have kept the previous policy,’ Schroeder told the committee. ‘We just thought it was better policy to equalize the way we treat income for all households.’ Under the new formula, the state uses the entire income of all members of a household in determining eligibility…”
• The clash over fingerprinting for food stamps, By Cindy Rodriguez, January 30, 2012, National Public Radio: “Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants New York City to stop requiring fingerprinting of its food stamp recipients, a stance that puts him at odds with the city’s mayor, who favors the practice. Cuomo says fingerprinting stigmatizes needy people and stops them from applying for help. In a recent State of the State speech, Cuomo pledged to stop fingerprinting food stamp recipients this year. But New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg says without fingerprinting, fraud would escalate. Besides Arizona, New York is the only place where the policy still exists…”

• Feds confirm high hurdle for DHHS cuts; LePage officials prepared to take case to D.C., By Steve Mistler, January 27, 2012, Lewiston Sun Journal: “The federal agency that will decide whether some of Gov. Paul LePage’s proposed Medicaid cuts qualify for waivers to make the reductions legal reaffirmed Thursday that the exemptions face long odds. In a written response to the Democratic leads on the Legislature’s budgetary committee, the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services confirmed that legislative action was not a consideration in whether the agency will grant a waiver from the federal health care law…”
• Kansas governor has no plans to slow Medicaid overhaul, By John Hanna (AP), January 26, 2012, Kansas City Star: “Kansas asked the federal government Thursday to waive some of its rules so that the state can overhaul its $2.9 billion Medicaid program, despite concerns among legislators that Gov. Sam Brownback is moving too quickly to turn all of it over to private health insurance companies. Brownback expects the state to issue contracts this year to three companies to manage the program, which provides health coverage to poor families and disabled and elderly Kansans. The contracts would take effect Jan. 1, 2013, and Kansas wants federal officials to issue a waiver so the state can include services for the disabled and elderly and build in financial incentives for improving services while controlling costs…”

Kansas Gov. Brownback to review state’s food stamp policy, By Laura Bauer, January 25, 2012, Kansas City Star: “Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback said Tuesday that he would review a new policy that has eliminated food stamps for hundreds of low-income children who are U.S. citizens but whose parents are illegal immigrants. The Star reported Sunday how the new way the state Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services counts income for food stamp eligibility has affected families across Kansas. Since the new policy went into effect Oct. 1, more than 1,000 households have lost their food stamps. Many said they had relied heavily on benefits provided by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Brownback told reporters Tuesday that he would look into the new policy and talk to SRS workers in the field to see how families have been affected. Advocates for low-income families were encouraged by Brownback’s words, although the governor’s spokeswoman said no changes are planned…”

Kansas slashes food aid for children of illegal immigrants, By Laura Bauer, January 22, 2012, Kansas City Star: “Pedro moved to the Kansas City area about 13 years ago and has held the same job for 11. Though he sometimes struggles to pay bills, he knows most people think he should receive no public aid. He’s an illegal immigrant. He doesn’t deserve handouts. He understands that. ‘I’ve never asked for anything for myself,’ said Pedro, who didn’t want his last name used to protect his family. ‘Never. I just work. Work hard.’ A new debate swirling around Kansas, though, isn’t about Pedro. It’s about two of his three children. They were born here, and one day they will have driver’s licenses and the right to vote, just like any other U.S. citizen. Early last year, when they needed food assistance, they got it. Pedro’s family received nearly $300 a month in food stamps. Enough to buy milk, eggs and meat, fruit and yogurt. Now, they get nothing. Neither do hundreds of other Kansas families who, like Pedro’s, are a mix of undocumented immigrants and U.S. citizens. At a time when Gov. Sam Brownback has vowed to reduce child poverty, the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services - a state agency the governor controls - made a policy change that eliminated food stamps for hundreds of low-income U.S. children whose parents are illegal immigrants. For more households, benefits were reduced…”

Recession takes toll on Kansas kids, By Ann Marie Bush, December 15, 2011, Topeka Capital-Journal: “Data shows Kansas children are feeling the full impact of the recession, said Shannon Cotsoradis, president and chief executive officer of Kansas Action for Children. The Kansas Kids Count report, which is being released Thursday, measures county by county how children are doing across 25 health indicators of health, education and economic success, a news release from Kansas Action for Children states. Nearly one in five Kansas children is living in poverty, and more than 47 percent of public school children are participating in the free or reduced-priced school lunch program…”

• Brownback’s administration rolls out Medicaid reform package, November 8, 2011, Wichita Eagle: “Gov. Sam Brownback’s administration unveiled a major Medicaid reform package Tuesday that will shift thousands of disabled, elderly and low-income residents into a managed care system that aims to reduce hospital visits and slow the growth of Medicaid spending over five years without reducing benefits. The ‘person-centered’ integrated care program is called KanCare. It will be managed by three companies that win state-issued three-year contracts. They will be evaluated and paid based on their outcomes, such as reduced emergency room visits…”
• Brownback seeks $850M in Medicaid savings, By Tim Carpenter, November 8, 2011, Topeka Capital-Journal: “Gov. Sam Brownback took a step Tuesday toward formation of a managed-care system for all Kansans on Medicaid that emphasizes coordination of services to improve health outcomes and cut costs by more than $850 million over a five-year period. Brownback said the cornerstone of the overhaul was an integrated care system - to be called KanCare - intended to improve the lives of 350,000 disabled, elderly and low-income Kansas. KanCare would take effect in January 2013 and begin to bend the cost curve of Medicaid down by engaging new partnerships with the state’s Medicaid provider community…”
• Lawmakers OK changes that could drop 65,000 from Medicaid, By Jason Stein, November 10, 2011, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “The Legislature’s nonpartisan budget office projects 65,000 people - nearly half of them children - would leave or be turned away from the state’s health programs for the poor, under a proposal passed by lawmakers Thursday. The Joint Finance Committee approved 11-4 a proposal by GOP Gov. Scott Walker’s administration to bridge the final part of a more than half-billion dollar budget gap in the rapidly growing health plans. All Republicans voted in favor and all Democrats against. The proposal must still win federal approval from President Barack Obama’s administration by the end of the year - a significant hurdle. The Medicaid health plans cover about one in five state residents - almost 1.2 million people - and provide everything from doctor visits for poor families to nursing home care for the elderly. To help control rapidly increasing costs in the programs, Walker’s administration wants to decrease benefits for a quarter of a million recipients, increase premiums for tens of thousands of others by up to tenfold, and drop coverage for adults and children for at least a year if the premiums aren’t paid…”

• Kansas proposes welfare changes, By Brad Cooper, September 16, 2011, Kansas City Star: “Kansas is undertaking a series of welfare reforms, including one measure that would remove a financial advantage for unmarried couples on the welfare rolls. The head of social services, Rob Siedlecki, revealed the reforms Friday, saying they’re intended to level the playing field in several programs that serve tens of thousands of people. The goal is to strengthen the agency’s efforts to help Kansans find employment and achieve self-sufficiency, he said…”
• Kansas reforming some welfare rules, By Scott Rothschild, September 16, 2011, Lawrence Journal-World: “Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services Secretary Robert Siedlecki Jr. on Friday announced a host of policy changes for programs that provide assistance to low-income Kansans. ‘These changes represent a significant change in policy, in that they treat all households equally, and create fairness across the system,’ Siedlecki said in a news release. Siedlecki said the changes would help eliminate fraud and abuse, and save from $10 million to $15 million, which would expand SRS’ programs to get folks back to work. ‘Getting people jobs is our first priority,’ Siedlecki said. The new policies will affect programs that provide tens of thousands of Kansans with food stamps, child care assistance and temporary assistance. They are set to take effect starting Oct. 1 and should be fully in place by Jan. 1…”

• Walker’s budget slashes tax credits that aid poor, By Dee J. Hall, March 6, 2011, Wisconsin State Journal: “Low-income taxpayers in Wisconsin would lose hundreds of dollars in tax credits a year under Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed budget - at the same time the governor wants tax cuts for businesses and investors to boost jobs. Walker proposes cutting about $16 million a year from the program, which in 2009 paid 273,939 low-income Wisconsin residents a total of $133 million. Under Walker’s proposed biennial budget, a single mother with two children earning about minimum wage - $15,000 a year - would lose $302 of her $704 Earned Income Tax Credit next year, according to estimates from the nonpartisan Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance. A two-parent household with two children earning $30,000 a year would see its tax credit cut by $194 to $258, the alliance said…”
• Bill seeks to cut EITC percentage, By Matthew Clark, March 11, 2011, Pittsburg Morning Sun: “A bill spearheaded by a Kansas House committee has been proposed to decrease Kansas’ Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) from its current 18 percent to 5 percent over the next four years. State Rep. Terry Calloway, a Pittsburg Republican, introduced the measure to the House Taxation Committee and it has already drawn sharp attacks from Democrats and other opponents who call the measure ‘counter-productive.’ The bill will generate an additional $56.3 million to the state’s General Fund initially in fiscal year 2012 and increase to $64.5 million by fiscal year 2016. It will reduce the amount of the tax credit - which is meant to benefit low-income individuals and families and also takes out a provision making the tax credit refundable. That means, if a family’s tax credit was higher than their tax liability, they would have the liability paid off, but would not get a check for the difference…”

• Few bright spots in new Kids Count report, By Ruth Campbell, November 30, 2010, Fort Scott Tribune: “Although Bourbon County surpasses its peers and the state in percentage of mothers who get prenatal care and has a lower percentage of low birth-weight babies than the rest of Kansas, its infant mortality rate rate is among the worst in the state, according to data from a Kids County report released Tuesday. Kansas Kids Count is produced by Kansas Action for Children and funded in part by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Kansas Action for Children is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to shaping policy that improves the lives of Kansas children and families. Data collection and analysis were provided by the Kansas Health Institute, according to the report…”
• Economic recession taking a toll on Kansas children, reports indicate, By Scott Rothschild, November 30, 2010, Lawrence Journal-World: “Many Kansas children aren’t faring well, according to two reports released Tuesday. In its annual survey, Kansas Action for Children said the troubled economic times are having an impact on youngsters. ‘As more working families struggle to make ends meet, more children are relying on free and reduced school lunches and more children are growing up without health coverage,’ said Shannon Cotsoradis, president of KAC. The new Kansas KIDS COUNT data showed that 45 percent of Kansas school children receive free or reduced lunch, 40 percent of children are growing up in low-income households, and 10 percent of Kansas children are uninsured…”
• Kids Count releases data, By Angela Deines, November 30, 2010, Topeka Capital-Journal: “When it comes to mothers getting adequate prenatal care, children getting properly immunized and the number of violent teen deaths, Shawnee County fares well compared to statewide numbers in the latest Kansas Kids Count data. ‘The good news is your immunizations are up,’ said Shannon Cotsoradis, executive director of Kansas Action for Children. ‘But the economic indicators aren’t as good.’ The report, a joint effort by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and Kansas Action for Children, shows higher poverty rates for Shawnee County children than the statewide rate and one out of two children qualify for free or reduced-price lunch…”
• Study: More Kansas kids in poverty, By Matthew Clark, December 1, 2010, Pittsburg Morning Sun: “More Kansas children are living in poverty and those who already are have seen their conditions worsen. That is the result of the KIDS COUNT study, which was released on Tuesday by the Kansas Action for Children (KAC) and The Annie E. Casey Foundation. The study concluded that approximately 45 percent of Kansas school children are participating in free and reduced lunches and 40 percent are growing up in low-income (23.08 percent) or poverty-stricken (17.33 percent) households. In addition, one in 10 Kansas children are currently not covered by health insurance…”

• Call center waits prove frustrating, By Phil Anderson, October 10, 2010, Topeka Capital-Journal: “Please don’t mention the word ‘filibuster’ to Kansas Department of Labor Secretary Jim Garner. He really doesn’t want to hear it. Not after a summer in which a filibuster that started in early June by U.S. Senate Republicans contributed to almost two months of delays in processing extensions to unemployment claims that Garner said resulted in thousands of frustrated Kansans having to wait weeks for benefits or information regarding their eligibility. The previous unemployment extension expired June 2, he said. Many thought passage of a new extension would be a mere formality, but the Senate filibuster action changed that. Garner said the Kansas Department of Labor had to stop taking applications because the federal extended benefit program ‘wasn’t legally in existence…’”
• N.H. long-term jobless take a hit: Feds shift burden to local welfare rolls, By John Nolen, October 11, 2010, Foster’s Daily Democrat: “Some unfortunate Granite Staters who lost their jobs when the recession began to impact New Hampshire in January 2009, have been unable to find work since then. Their woes eased slightly this summer when Congress voted to extend unemployment benefits to 99 weeks for this might have carried them through to November. It was a false dawn, though. Like just a handful of states, New Hampshire’s unemployment rate has averaged below six percent in recent months, and so the latest federal benefit extension lifeline has excluded the long-term unemployed in New Hampshire. The calculations that go into the 99-week unemployment payments are complex, and in the process a few states with lower unemployment rates may be filtered out of some of the federal programs…”

• Medicaid change could affect more than illegals, By Mark Andersen, January 27, 2010, Lincoln Journal Star: “A number of legal citizens in Nebraska could lose prenatal Medicaid coverage alongside 1,000 illegal immigrants because of a federal rule clarification. The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services told state senators Jan. 15 the state was notified that federal law prohibits Medicaid coverage for people who are not documented, except in emergencies. That includes prenatal care for illegal immigrants. But the same rule may affect some legal residents in two groups: pregnant teens living with parents and pregnant adults living in borderline low-income households. The expected change for both groups results from a federal demand that Nebraska stop using eligibility standards that count the unborn as people for purposes of Medicaid eligibility…”
• Officials disagree on who can make Medicaid decision for illegals, By Mark Andersen, January 28, 2010, Lincoln Journal Star: “Nebraska Medicaid could continue to cover prenatal care for poor illegal immigrants, but that must be the Legislature’s call, the state’s top Medicaid official said Thursday. ‘I’m a firm believer in prenatal care,’ said Vivianne Chaumont, director of the state’s division of Medicaid and Long-Term Care, ‘but the feds make policy. The Legislature makes policy.’ In light of LB403, the law approved last year that denies illegal immigrants the right to public benefits, jobs or contracts, Chaumont said she will not assume authority to extend that coverage. Staff attorneys with Nebraska Appleseed argued that Chaumont could act without official legislative action, which could be important now that the deadline has passed for introducing new bills…”
• Senate affirms Medicaid cut, By Tim Carpenter, January 27, 2010, Topeka Capital-Journal: “The legislative session’s first major showdown in a caustic state budget battle Wednesday culminated with Senate affirmation of a $22 million reduction in Medicaid funding recommended by Gov. Mark Parkinson. An attempt to delete the cut to a program providing health care to the poor failed 16-24, with more than a dozen Republicans joining with Democrats to preserve this controversial element of the governor’s plan for balancing the current budget. The Senate bill was then forwarded to the House for consideration. Parkinson proposed the 10 percent reduction in Medicaid payments to hospitals, nursing homes and clinics to help close a deficit exacerbated by unexpected declines in state tax revenue. Adjustments outlined by the governor were part of a larger package of spending cuts he believes sufficient to meet government obligations through June…”
• Gibbons drops proposal to end state Medicaid program, By David McGrath Schwartz, January 27, 2010, Las Vegas Sun: “Gov. Jim Gibbons has decided not to push for Nevada to drop out of Medicaid, citing spending patterns, the number of people served under the public health plan and the ‘apparent demise of the federal health care reform.’ In a news release, Gibbons warned that spending has increased an average of 10 percent a year over the past decade, and ‘undercuts our ability to fund other state responsibilities and is crowding out education, public safety and infrastructure…’”

• Racial disparities reason for ranking in poverty, By Sarah Chacko, December 13, 2009, Baton Rouge Advocate: “Race and location are still the strongest factors in determining whether a child lives in poverty in Louisiana, according to a recent report on the status of the state’s children. In Louisiana, black children are 3.5 times as likely to live in poverty as white children. Poverty rates are highest in rural parishes in northeast Louisiana, along the Mississippi River. However, 2000 census data also show that a majority of black children in every one of the state’s eight largest metropolitan areas lived in a high-poverty neighborhood. Social service experts say government programs have not been expansive enough to fill in the economic and educational gaps…”
• More Kansas kids in poverty, By Cristina Janney, December 12, 2009, Newton Kansan: “Data recently reported by Kansas Action for Children raises concerns about the number of children living at or just above the poverty level in the state. Kids Count is an annual report from data collected by the Kansas Health Institute for Kansas Action for Children. The report indicates almost 40 percent of Kansas children live below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. The number of children living in lower-class and lower-middle-class homes increased slowly between 2004 and 2008. However, authors of the report noted the data is dated and may not fully reflect the impact of the recession on household incomes…”

• Medicaid, S-CHIP expansion plan could hurt states’ budgets, By Richard Wolf, October 18, 2009, USA Today: “The government programs that provide health care to the poor would expand to cover nearly one in five Americans under health insurance legislation pending in Congress, putting pressure on federal and state budgets. Medicaid, one of the fastest-growing government programs for two decades, and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program would grow from about 50 million people today to more than 60 million in 2019, according to data from the Congressional Budget Office and Kaiser Family Foundation. That would be the biggest single expansion since Medicaid was created in 1965…”
• Medicaid expansion brings pro, con reactions, By Emily Bregel, October 19, 2009, Chattanooga Times Free Press: “Local physicians said health care reform proposals to expand Medicaid coverage drastically, while well-intentioned, are likely unsustainable. ‘Where is the money going to come from to make this happen?’ said Dr. Mack Worthington, a family practice physician in Chattanooga who said almost one-quarter of his patients are on TennCare. ‘I’m all for increasing access, but I just wonder how it’s going to be funded.’ The U.S. Senate Finance Committee last week passed a health reform proposal that would expand Medicaid programs to anyone who earns up to 133 percent of the poverty level, or about $29,000 a year for a family of four…”
• Uninsured & overwhelmed, By Ben Piper, October 18, 2009, Hattiesburg American: “Casey Little finds herself in a health care predicament. Little, 25, of Seminary needs health insurance to be able to afford treatments that could relieve the pain she suffers from fibromyalgia. But the nerve disorder has left her constantly hurting, unable to work - and unable to get insurance…”
• Pressure mounts: 12,000 caught in a backlog, By Andra Bryan Stefanoni, October 19, 2009, Joplin Globe: “When Candice Sinclair was nearing the end of her pregnancy, she applied for Medicaid to cover her expenses and those of her soon-to-be-born son, Jake. That was in June. Their applications still haven’t been processed, meaning Sinclair is left without means to pay an estimated $5,000 hospital bill, and for Jake’s first year of immunizations and checkups…”
• Kansas has backlog of 12,000 Medicaid applications, Associated Press, October 19, 2009, Kansas City Star: “Rising unemployment, the swelling ranks of the uninsured, outdated technology and the state’s budget problems have led to a backlog of 12,000 Medicaid applications in Kansas, health officials said. A contractor that processes applications for the Kansas Health Policy Authority is supposed to complete them in two to six weeks, but has taken up to four months in some cases…”
• Lessons from the Massachusetts healthcare experiment, By James Oliphant and Kim Geiger, October 17, 2009, Los Angeles Times: “Three years ago, Massachusetts passed the most sweeping healthcare bill in the country, adopting a plan that closely resembles the proposals being considered by Congress. It is a plan that now offers powerful lessons for the whole nation. The state’s system, like the proposals moving toward votes in the House and Senate, focused on three goals: making medical insurance almost universal, fostering competition through a regulated insurance exchange, and helping low-income workers pay for coverage. Today, Massachusetts leads the nation with 96% of its residents covered by insurance — an even larger share than some of the plans before Congress would cover. The employer-based insurance system remains intact despite fears that the state’s healthcare overhaul might cause companies to pull back…”

• State gets $56 million for weatherization from stimulus, By Beccy Tanner, August 26, 2009, Wichita Eagle: “Bernice Jones made history Tuesday when her house on East Second Street became the first in Kansas to be weatherized using federal stimulus funds. Workers were installing a furnace, central air-conditioning unit and refrigerator in her 1920s-era bungalow Tuesday as she ushered in the Kansas governor and other state and city officials…”
• Pa. gets weatherization funds held up by impasse, By Tom Infield, August 26, 2009, Philadelphia Inquirer: “After months of delay caused by state inaction, the federal government finally was able to announce yesterday that it had awarded $101 million in stimulus funds to Pennsylvania for home weatherization. E. Craig Heim, in charge of weatherization for the state Department of Community and Economic Development, said that while Pennsylvania was “unquestionably behind” many other states in launching its program, “I think we’ll be able to catch up.” The funds from the U.S. Department of Energy, together with some earlier money that has been on hold, comprise nearly half of the $253 million that the state expects to receive to weatherize the homes of nearly 30,000 low-income Pennsylvanians over the next 21/2 years. The funds represent a sevenfold expansion of the decades-old Weatherization Assistance Program…”

• Free lunch?, By Simone Sebastian, July 5, 2009, Columbus Dispatch: “More poor children are eating free at school, but that’s actually a good thing for many districts’ finances. The reason? Federal subsidies increase.  A week rarely went by last school year without a plea for help from another newly poor family in South-Western schools. Parents were losing their jobs and wanted to know how the district could help…”
• N.J. offering free meals to kids from low-income families throughout summer, By Kristen Alloway, July 8, 2009, Star-Ledger: “Eleven-year-old camper Bryan polished off his baked chicken, vegetables and corn bread and eagerly headed back for seconds.  For Bryan, and more than 40 other children from predominantly low-income families at the Salvation Army in New Brunswick, it was their second free meal of the day — breakfast was pancakes — courtesy of the Community FoodBank of New Jersey and the federal government…”
• More Wichita kids go hungry, By Roy Wenzl, July 5, 2009, Wichita Eagle: “The recession has hurt Wichita’s poor people and their children much harder and faster than social service agencies predicted when it started last year, food charities say.  Agencies that track poverty are compiling rapidly rising statistics about Wichita children going hungry, prompting the Wichita Community Foundation to call a July 13 summit of local leaders to figure out how to feed them…”