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Advocacy & Policy

Nebraska State Capital photo provided courtesy of the Office of the Capitol Commission.

March 20, 2023

Policy & Advocacy News for the Week of March 20, 2023

byAlicia Christensen, Director of Advocacy, Policy, and Research

This edition features:

  • SNAP expansion bill gets priority -- how you can help it get out of committee
  • Hearings on a couple of bills of note
  • News stories about Housing Lobby Day

Senator Jen Day Designates Expanded SNAP Eligibility Bill As Her Priority Bill

LB84 maintains current gross income limits for SNAP eligibility.

Currently, gross income must be at or below 165% of the federal poverty level; if this bill doesn't pass, the gross income limit will go down to 130% of the federal poverty level

That means:

  • Right now, a family of three earning $41,000 per year is eligible for SNAP benefits.
  • If LB84 is not passed, that family would no longer be eligible for SNAP at the end of September 2023. The gross income limit would lower to $32,318 -- so the family's income would be too high to qualify.

This bill directly affects about 4,000 Nebraskans currently receiving SNAP who would no longer qualify under the new limits.

Maintaining the higher income limits means more people can get SNAP to supplement their incomes and may not need to visit Together or another pantry.

Designating this a priority gives the bill a better chance of passing, but it must be voted out of committee first.

Email your comments to the undecided members:

Senator Ben Hansen - bhansen@leg.ne.gov

Senator Beau Ballard - bballard@leg.ne.gov

Senator Brian Hardin - bhardin@leg.ne.gov

Senator Merv Riepe - mriepe@leg.ne.gov

Other HHS Committee Members:

Machaela Cavanaugh - mcavanaugh@leg.ne.gov

Jen Day (bill introducer) - jday@leg.ne.gov

Lynne Walz - lwalz@leg.ne.gov

Committee Hearings on Bills of Note: Week of March 20th

Testimony on two bills will be heard by the Revenue Committee on Wednesday, March 22nd.

LB524 would create an income tax credit for food donations:

  • grocery stores, retailers, and restaurants would be eligible for a credit that they could subtract from the amount of tax they owe for donating food to a pantry or food bank
  • the credit would amount to 50% of the value of the food donation, with a maximum credit of $2,500
  • this bill seeks to encourage local businesses to donate to emergency food providers, like Together

To support this bill:

Submit a comment online for the record before noon on Tuesday, March 21st.

Comment on LB524

 

LB747 would provide an income tax credit for renters, similar to the deduction that homeowners get on their taxes.

  • renters could take a deduction equal to 4% of the total rent they paid or $200 -- whichever amount is greater

To support this bill:

Submit a comment online for the record before noon on Tuesday, March 21st.

Comment on LB747

 

There are also two bills of note on Friday, March 24th.

The Government, Military, and Veterans Affairs Committee will hear testimony on LB715, which would require Governor Pillen to accept the over $40 million in Emergency Rental Assistance funds from the federal government.

  • This money would go to Nebraska counties outside Douglas and Lancaster Counties, which did not receive any of the second round of COVID relief funds designed to help renters facing housing insecurity as a result of the pandemic.
  • Passing LB715 would make millions of dollars available to programs designed to prevent homelessness throughout the state

To voice your support of LB715:

Submit a comment online for the record before noon on Thursday, March 23rd.

Comment on LB715

 

LB763, which would adopt the Emergency Food Assistance Act, will be before the Appropriations Committee.

  • if passed, this bill would make $10 million available for food banks
  • food banks could use the grants for food, infrastructure, storage, equipment, or increased capacity
  • helping the food banks function better helps Together's pantry meet our participants' needs

To voice your support of LB763:

Submit a comment online for the record before noon on Thursday, March 23rd.

Comment on LB763

 Housing Lobby Day Recap

A huge thank you to everyone that participated in Housing Lobby Day on Tuesday, March 14th and to those who held down the fort while we drew attention to housing issues in Nebraska.

Together employee, Destiny Fant, provided comments on how tenants' rights are a critical component to ensure all Nebraskans have a safe and affordable place to live. She's quoted in the news coverage by KETV:

https://www.ketv.com/article/nebraska-state-senator-affordable-housing-crucial-to-solving-workforce-shortage/43318851

Housing Lobby Day also received coverage in the Examiner and KOLN:

https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/affordable-housing-advocates-gather-at-state-capitol-to-learn-and-lobby-for-millions/

Together takes the experience and voice of those it serves to elected officials. Together advocates for policies at the local and state level to increase housing stability, safe and affordable housing, food security, and economic security.

 

Advocacy

Together's advocacy team works with a broad coalition of organizations throughout our community to advance policies in areas of affordable housing, access to food, and economic security for those in need.

Research

Our research supports Together by evaluating programs, advising on best practices, and making sure that the experiences of those we serve are accessible to our elected officials. We also partner with other organizations in the community to provide research and evaluation services as needed.

Results

Together has led efforts to provide safe housing by advocating for the city to pass a rental registration and proactive inspection ordinance. The advocacy team has worked on key legislative efforts to increase tenant protections at the state level, reduce the cliff-effect in SNAP and childcare programs, and enact a statewide eviction moratorium in response to COVID-19. Together’s advocacy efforts resulted in millions of dollars of CARES funding directed towards rental assistance for Omaha families.

By collaborating with other advocacy organizations to help support initiatives addressing the root causes of poverty, Together is able to keep hundreds of families in their home. 

Our 2023 Impact

  • Households served through Crisis Engagement Program

    622

  • Pounds of Food Distributed Through Choice Food Pantry

    2,844,794

  • Volunteer Hours Contributing to the Mission

    4,394

  • Exits to Positive Housing Destinations After STEHP

    61

© 2024 Together
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