Floor speech by U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern: "Hunger is a political condition."

Washington, DC, April 17, 2012

U.S. Representative James P. McGovern
Statement on -Hunger Hits Home- documentary and Hunger in America
April 17, 2012

M. Speaker, this past Saturday, the Food Network premiered their first ever documentary called -Hunger Hits Home.- This powerful program showed the struggle that millions of Americans go through just to put food on their tables. I urge my colleagues - indeed, all Americans - to watch it.

It's fitting that the Food Network, a cable network that focuses on cooking, would choose to highlight the scourge of hunger with its first documentary. That's because food is at the heart of the problem. While 435 Members of Congress and 100 Senators will never have to worry about going hungry, there are nearly 49 million people who struggle each year to put food on their table. 17 million kids each year go hungry. And those numbers are getting worse, not better.

The Food Network aired this documentary because of the hard work of the good people at Share Our Strength. Led by my good friend Billy Shore, Share Our Strength is a leader in the fight to end child hunger and this effort wouldn't be where it is today without them.

We have more than enough food in America to feed everyone. We also have the delivery systems to ensure that food gets to those people who need it.

The problem is politics. We have made a political decision not to end to hunger. We have the means, the food and the programs to ensure that not one person goes without food in this country. What we lack, M. Speaker, is the political will to actually make it happen.

We should remember that while there is a cost to ending hunger, the cost of doing nothing is so much more. According to a report from the Center for American Progress and Brandeis University, hunger costs America more than $261 billion each year.

That's billion with a b.

Specifically, hunger costs, quote, -at least$167.5 billion due to the combination of lost economic productivity per year, more expensive public education because of the rising costs of poor education outcomes, avoidable health care costs, and the cost of charity to keep families fed. This $167.5 billion does not include the cost of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the other key federal nutrition programs, which run at about $94 billion a year.We call this $167.5 billion America's hunger bill. In 2010 it cost every citizen $542 due to the far-reaching consequences of hunger in our nation. At the household level the hunger bill came to at least $1,410 in 2010. And because our $167.5 billion estimate is based on a cautious methodology, the actual cost of hunger and food insecurity to our nation is probably higher- - end quote.

$167.5 billion. That's a lot of money. It's a staggering amount. Yet we continue to ignore those costs and allow hunger to grow in America.

We know that hunger would be even worse in the country if it weren't for programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, the school meal programs and other federal anti-hunger programs. These programs are literally a lifeline for millions of hungry children, parents and seniors.

I believe we can end hunger in America if we muster the political will to do so. Fighting hunger has traditionally been a bipartisan effort. Unfortunately, the Republican leadership is pushing an agenda that will actually make hunger worse in America. Tomorrow, the Agriculture Committee will mark up legislation that cuts $33 billion from the most important anti-hunger program we have in this country. SNAP is a program that not only provides food to low income parents, seniors and children; it also provides the most effective form of economic stimulus and it actually reduces poverty.

Yet the Republican leadership continues to demagogue the program as wasteful as fraudulent and as something that is growing out of control. But nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, SNAP is among the most effective AND efficient federal programs. The truth is that SNAP error rates are around 3%. I challenge anyone to find me a Defense Department programs with 3% error rates.

I look forward to the time when the Republican leadership stops using hunger as a wedge issue and lets this becomes a bipartisan issue once again.

Hunger Hits Home shows us the problem facing this nation. The challenge is presented to us - are we going to end hunger once and for all?

So far, the answer from the Republican leadership is a resounding ‘no' and I regret that very much.

I yield back the balance of my time.