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Hunger is a real problem among Oklahoma’s children
commentary
January 17, 2024
Hunger is a real problem among Oklahoma’s children
By Joe Dorman CEO ? OICA,

OKLAHOMA CITY – There has been a great deal of news coverage regarding Oklahoma’s refusal to accept federal funds to support children who qualify for free and reduced school lunches during the summer months.

The fact is this failure will leave many Oklahoma children hungry. According to the Food Research & Action Center, the nation’s top private entity tracking hunger issues across the states, because of this refusal, more than 403,000 eligible Oklahoma children will not receive an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card for their families to receive approximately $40 per summer month when the children are not in school.

The funding would have totaled an estimated $48,360,000 in benefits which would have been distributed to our state. No matter how you describe it, that is almost $50 million that could have been pumped into Oklahoma’s economy by being spent in local grocery stores. It is our tax dollars we paid to Washington that will now go to some other state.

Arguments were made that churches and nonprofit organizations should meet the needs of hungry individuals and do more to reduce government assistance, but the needs are growing faster than support allows. Many of these private organizations operate on grants and private donations, and giving is just simply down, which puts a tremendous burden on those who can donate or volunteer, especially during the daytime hours. Some might point fingers and complain that these enrollment numbers are too high, but it is based on the income of families, just like Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program (SNAP).

Data reported by KOSU show that Oklahoma had a poverty rate of 15.7% compared to the national poverty rate of 11.5%, leaving the state with the eighth highest poverty rate in the country.

Additionally, 1 in 5 Oklahoma children were living at or below the federal poverty level in 2022, which based on family size, is $14,580 for a single individual and $30,000 for a family of four. Oklahoma average income earnings are $24.49 per hour, according to Forbes Advisor, or about $50,940 annually.

Just so you know these amounts, according to the Economic Policy Institute, the average annual cost of infant care in Oklahoma is $8,576, or $715 per month per child. Childcare for a 4-year-old costs about $6,605, or $550 each month. Oklahoma is one of 33 states and the District of Columbia where infant care is more expensive than college.

Additionally, the median rent index for a two-bedroom apartment in Oklahoma City today is $1,155, according to the March 2022 rent report from Apartment List. That is more than 25% higher than the November 2020 rate used to determine the cost of living.

So, for a single parent paying for daycare for two children and rent, that is nearly $30,000, well above the poverty level for three. That leaves little if any money for food or other necessities, such as health insurance. This is why these dollars were desperately needed.

There are many children in the summer months who can participate in summer congregate feeding programs. Still, summer meals reach only a fraction of the children who rely on free and reduced-price school meals during the school year. A big reason for that is that Oklahoma is a very rural state with many people living outside the highest population density areas.

It is impossible for many children living outside town limits to travel to congregate feeding sites where food is prepared daily. Additionally, Feeding America estimates that SNAP provides nine times the number of meals provided by the overall food bank network. That is what made the EBT card solution a much better way to reach every child.

The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA) certainly hopes the state will reconsider this rejection of funds to support children. We encourage the Legislature to act this year to provide relief to the struggling families lawmakers represent.

Jefferson Highway keeps on rollin’
A: Main, news
Jefferson Highway keeps on rollin’
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
Long before Route 66, there was the Jefferson Highway. Route 66 was a federally funded, 2,448-mile highway that crossed the country going east and west from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, Californ...
A: Main, news
Jacob Foos re-hired as Eufaula City Manager
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
It was a surprise hire, but not a total surprise as former Eufaula City Manager Jacob Foos was rehired as Eufaula’s city manager. The hiring took place following an executive session at a special meet...
A: Main, news
Complications of finding a city manager
June 11, 2025
Jeb Jones resigned as city manager in April. He was hired in 2022 to replace Jacob Foos, who had resigned months earlier and became assistant city manager in the City of Shawnee. Andrea Weckmuel-ler B...
A: Main, news
LEA Poker Run Saturday
June 11, 2025
The Golden Eagle Poker Run, one of the most popular events on Lake Eufaula, is Saturday, June 14. This year’s theme is Pirates & Parrots, so get your crew and costumes ready for a day of high seas adv...
McIntosh County Democrat wins Sequoyah Award
A: Main, news
McIntosh County Democrat wins Sequoyah Award
June 11, 2025
The Oklahoma Press Association presented its Better Newspaper Contest Awards during the OPA Annual convention June 6-7, at the Grand Casino Hotel and Resort in Shawnee. The top award a newspaper can r...
A: Main, news
Commissioners getting an increase in road spending
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
Rep. Tim Turner, R-Kinta, announced some good news and some bad news at the Monday morning Monthly County Commissioner meeting. First, the bad news, at least for those who oppose wind turbines in the ...
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Bridge dedicated to World War II veteran
A: Main, news
Bridge dedicated to World War II veteran
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
June 11, 2025
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation recently honored the late veteran William “Bill” Antrum Fox Jr. by naming a bridge after him. The William A. Fox Jr. Memorial Bridge is on SH 9 East at Nine M...
A: Main, news
Ten Mile Yard Sale this weekend
June 11, 2025
Bring an umbrella Bargain hunters set your alarms. The annual 10-milelong yard sale begins at 7 a.m. Sunday, stretching from the east end of Eufaula, down SH 9 east through Longtown and past Enterpris...
Preliminary set for 2 suspected of killing Eufaulan
news
Preliminary set for 2 suspected of killing Eufaulan
June 11, 2025
Two Muskogee men charged with killing a Eufaula resident were ordered to appear at a preliminary hearing in district court at 10 a.m., Thursday, July 3. Suspects Kyren Omari Boulware, 19, and Michael ...
2 dead, 4 injured in pileup
news
2 dead, 4 injured in pileup
June 11, 2025
Two people from Marshall, Texas were killed, and four others were injured in a harrowing four-vehicle pileup on U.S. 69 half a mile south of the Muskogee City Limits at about 2:20 p.m. on Monday, June...
Fink inducted into OPA Half Century Club
news
Fink inducted into OPA Half Century Club
June 11, 2025
Managing Editor Jerry Fink of The Eufaula Indian Journal and the McIntosh County Democrat was inducted into the Oklahoma Press Association Half Century Club on Saturday, June 7 at the Grand in Shawnee...
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