Federal Cuts to Food Assistance to Increase Hunger in PA as Farmers Markets Access Expands [VIDEO]

[Counterpoint PA]

This is a video from my show Counterpoint PA, the only grassroots progressive newscast exclusively about Pennsylvania politics.

In this video, I discuss a new report that shows a cut in federal assistance scheduled to take effect this November will reduce the already scarce amount of food available to nearly 2 million Pennsylvanians who benefit from the program, and offer a little of my own commentary about what this means especially since a program that just launched this year is starting to make fresh fruits and vegetables from farmers markets available to Pennsylvanians who participate in the program.

For a transcript, links to the sources in this story, or to browse the show's categorized video archive, go to http://counterpointpa.org. (Go here if you want to go right to the post for this video.)

Stay in touch on Twitter @CounterpointPA and on Facebook at http://facebook.com/counterpointpa and stay tuned throughout this week for four more PA Headlines, The Breakdown, and Worst Pennsylvanians of the Week.

This week's show is expanding - rather than the usual four PA Headlines I've always done so far, I'm doing six PA Headlines this week, concluding with a new segment called Activism in Action that will now regularly conclude PA Headlines with a quick look at progressive protests around the state.

Still to come:

PA Headlines

Keystone Progress has issued a bombshell report revealing PA Independent - often taken as a legitimate news source by establishment press but criticized by yours truly for defending conservatives and attacking liberals - to be connected to a national conservative media plan involving ALEC and the Koch brothers

The first controversy over a new law that just passed allowing the pooling of all natural gas leases for fracking unless a contract specifically prohibits fracking is arising as a corporation seeks to take advantage of PA families

RIP Governor Scranton, a progressive Republican from an era when that was a thing

Activism in Action - protests call for legalization of marijuana in Pennsylvania, for US Rep. Charlie Dent (R) to vote for the comprehensive immigration package passed by the US Senate, and more

The Breakdown

A detailed look at the new state budget for the next fiscal year signed into law just last month

All that plus Counterpoint PA's special homage to Keith Olbermann, the Worst Pennsylvanians of the Week!

[grasswire]

1. FYI, let me tell you how Oregon encourages this.

A local fresh grocery chain, New Seasons, contributes $5 in tokens to any food stamp recipient who uses their SNAP card to buy $10 in tokens to be used at the farmers market.

So SNAP recipients get to use tokens with the vendors for every food item except hot food prepared on site. And they have more $ to spend. It has been a very positive program.

Maybe PA could find a source for the same kind of incentive donations.

[Counterpoint PA]

2. Sounds awesome, thanks for sharing! n/t