How New Executive Orders Will Help The Hungry In Baltimore County

Elizabeth Janney
·7 min read

BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD — President Joe Biden signed a new batch of executive orders Friday, one of which specifically aims to curb pandemic-induced hunger for millions of Americans in states including Maryland.

In 2020, record-setting unemployment and sudden health care expenses due to the pandemic caused a dramatic spike in the number of hungry Americans. Feeding America, the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States, originally estimated the number of people experiencing food insecurity in the United States would swell to 50 million by the end of the year.

One of the two latest orders from the White House hopes to provide much-needed relief to those facing the unprecedented hunger crisis.

The new executive order from Biden calls for the following:

  • Increase the Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) program by 15 percent, according to a Forbes report. The program currently allows low-income families to receive up to $5.70 per child for each day of school meals missed due to COVID-related closures. The order would give a family of three children more than $100 in extra benefits every two months, officials told the Washington Post.

  • Expand eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more commonly known as food stamps, which provides funds for low-income families to buy food. The expansion would help the program reach an additional 12 million people, Forbes reported.

"The American people can't afford to wait," Brian Deese, the National Economic Council director, said during a Friday news conference. "And so many are hanging by a thread. They need help, and we are committed to doing everything we can to provide that help as quickly as possible."

Addressing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Thrifty Food Plan, which is the basis for determining SNAP benefits, is among the most significant changes included in Friday’s order, Lisa Davis, senior vice president of Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign, told The Washington Post.

Current metrics used to determine benefit amounts are out of date and don’t provide an accurate assessment of the economic realities most struggling households face, she added. Friday’s order will ask the USDA to consider beginning the process of revising the Thrifty Food Plan to better reflect the modern cost of a healthy basic diet.

Feeding American on Friday applauded the moves by Biden’s administration.

“We are heartened by the president’s quick first steps to making that commitment a reality. The pandemic and economic downturn have made it harder to ensure families have enough to eat,” the organization said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to work with the Biden Administration to address the hunger crisis in the United States.”

The second executive order signed by Biden on Friday calls for the Office of Personnel Management to develop recommendations to pay more federal employees at least $15 per hour.

Though national food insecurity levels were at a 20-year low in 2019, according to data compiled by Feeding America, 35 million people — including more than 10 million children — still lived in food-insecure households. That number swelled in 2020 and was expected to reach 50 million by the end of the year.

Thankfully, coronavirus-worsened food insecurity hasn’t risen to the 50 million mark Craig Gunderson, a University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign economist, originally projected — largely because of congressional relief packages and an unemployment rate that didn’t surge as high as first feared.

“But 50 million people is still a big number,” he told Patch.

Still, food insecurity isn’t a new problem in Baltimore County.

More than 90,000 people in Baltimore County were considered food insecure before than pandemic, according to Feeding America. The continuing economic fallout has increased that number to more than 110,000 who are on the brink of hunger in Baltimore County.

Feeding America serves 200 member food banks that serve and supply 60,000 food pantries, kitchens and meal programs around the country, including Baltimore County.

Here are some resources here in Baltimore County, which has set up a food assistance map for those searching for locations closest to them:

  • Greater Bethlehem Temple Church, 8334 Liberty Rd., Windsor Mill, MD 21244. Food assistance for Baltimore County residents from 12 to 3 p.m. Wednesdays. Bring photo ID. Call 410-521-4072 to be put on the appointment list.

  • Community Crisis Center, 725 Main St., Reisterstown, MD 21136. Deliveries of emergency food by appointment in 21136,21117, 21071 ZIP codes only or driveway drive-thru emergency food pickup from 9 to 11 a.m. Saturdays and 5 to 7 p.m. Mondays.

  • Helping Hands Food Pantry, Upper Falls, MD, Salem United Methodist, 7901 Bradshaw Rd., Upper Falls, MD 21156. Food distribution is available during the pandemic from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday and Friday. Individuals must call 410-592-2226 before arriving and leave name, number of children and number of adults. A five-day emergency supply of food will be ready when a person arrives.

  • Liberty Church,11301 Liberty Rd., Owings Mills, MD 21117. Food available from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Thursdays for residents in the 21117, 21133 and 21784 ZIP codes.

  • Liberty Community Development, 7111 Windsor Blvd., Windsor Mill, MD 21244. Drive-up pantry from 9 a.m. to noon Thursdays while supplies last.

  • Liberty Food Pantry, 3301 Milford Mill Rd., Baltimore, MD 21244. Food available 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Sundays, from 1 to 3 p.m. every third Tuesday and upon request.

  • Loaves and Fishes at Mt. Olive United Methodist, 5015 Old Court Rd., Randallstown, MD 21133. Groceries available third Saturday of each month from noon until 1:15 p.m. Food is generally available on an emergency basis during the week by contacting the Mt. Olive UMC office at 410-922-2853.

  • Mount Calvary AME Church, 349 Eudowood Lane, Towson, MD 21286. Food pantry operates from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Call 410-296-9474 for more information.

  • The Pantry at Community Christian Church, 8007 Corporate Dr., Suite C, Nottingham, MD 21236. Email thepantry@communitycc.net or call The Pantry at 410-335-5940 to set up an appointment to pick up a week's worth of nonperishable groceries.

  • Perry Hall United Methodist Church Food Pantry, 9515 Belair Rd., Baltimore, MD 21236. Call 410-256-1897 for more information.

  • Reisterstown UMC, 308 Main St Reisterstown, MD 21136. Food pantry from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

  • St. Ursula Pantry, 8801 North Rd., Parkville, MD 21234. The food pantry is open the third Thursday of the month. Call 410-665-0918 for more information.

  • Thankful Paws pet food bank, Perry Hall, MD 21128. The nonprofit food bank delivers pet food to low-income individuals (monthly income under $960) and the elderly (70-plus years old) in Perry Hall as well as those experiencing homelessness. Call 410-907-PAWS from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Friday except holidays or email BARK@THANKFULPAWS.ORG for more information.

  • Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, 1100 Philadelphia Rd., Joppa, MD 21085. Open 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays; 3:30 to 5 p.m. Thursdays; and 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturdays.

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Patch has partnered with Feeding America to help raise awareness on behalf of the millions of Americans facing hunger. Feeding America, which supports 200 food banks across the country, estimates that in 2020, more than 50 million Americans will not have enough nutritious food to eat due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. This is a Patch social good project; Feeding America receives 100 percent of donations. Find out how you can donate in your community or find a food pantry near you.

This article originally appeared on the Perry Hall Patch