An Alabama food bank leader anticipates a major increase in people needing to turn to groups like hers to cover their basic needs if the massive tax and spending legislation backed by President Trump clears Congress.
Linda Jones, the co-founder of the food bank Alabama Childhood Food Solutions, says her program that now distributes food to nearly 2,600 kids each week has already seen a 30% increase over last year. Overall, her organization now feeds close to 1,200 families in central Alabama — doubling last year's numbers.
"It's just growing by leaps and bounds. And if this new bill gets passed, which I feel like it probably will, we will probably start doubling even more so," Jones told NPR's Michel Martin.
Speaking on Morning Edition, Jones said high food prices are driving the increase. "We've had people come in and said that they got food stamps, but they don't give them anything but bread and milk. And by the time they get out of the grocery store, that's it. So that's where they come to us to get other food," she added.
The bill would make major changes to the country's social safety net. Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, are targeted for major cuts. Millions of people stand to lose food assistance if the House passes the bill after it cleared the Senate earlier this week, according to an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office of the House's first version of the bill.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Michel Martin: Why do you think it's gone up so much?
Linda Jones: I think it's because of the food prices. Like eggs, $8 a dozen. Who can afford that? And milk is so high. Everything is so high. We've had people come in and say that they got food stamps even, but that doesn't give them anything but bread and milk. And by the time they get out of the grocery store, that's it. So that's where they come to us, to get other food.
Martin: One of the things that this bill would do, especially with Medicaid and SNAP, it would now be linked to work requirements.
Jones: Yes. And I don't know how that's going to work because some of the people agree on it. Some of them could work. And I agree with that. Those that are capable of working should work. But some of them, you look at them and you think, man, they could go out and go to work. But once you start talking to them, it's a different story entirely.
Martin: It's my understanding that a lot of people who get Medicaid and/or food stamps already work. Is that true?
Jones: Yes, I think so.
Martin: So tell me more about that. If they were already working, what's the story? Why do they need this food help?
Jones: Some come in and get food. And they say they're like a dollar or two [off] to qualify for food stamps, or they've lost their food stamps because they moved.
We had some children in our backpack ministry where this young boy was getting food every week. He came in and asked the teacher if he could possibly get his bag early because they had no food in the house whatsoever. So, come to find out, there was a dad that had seven children whose wife took the youngest child and left him abandoned with the other children. And this man and his family were just hanging on by a thread. But we came in and we're giving them food now monthly to help him with his grocery bill, at least.
Martin: And the backpack ministry, remind us what that is.
Jones: The backpack ministries is where we feed children that don't get enough food during the week at school and we give them food for the weekends.
Martin: Do you see waste, fraud and abuse in the system from where you are?
Jones: From my standpoint, no. Mostly what we see are poor, poor people. We try to make every dollar we can count to be able to buy that food. We have an audit every year. And this year, they came in and they said that 97% is what we use for all our food and stuff. Only 3% is used for other things.
Martin: So it's only like 3% administrative costs, which is a very narrow margin. So I guess you're operating mostly on volunteers, right?
Jones: Yes, we have over 900 volunteers come in through our distribution center once a year.
The digital and broadcast versions of this story were edited by Olivia Hampton.
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