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Food banks, partner pantries urge council to retain $2.131 million in FY26 funding amid rising need
Summary
Multiple food bank leaders and partner pantry volunteers testified during the FY26 budget hearing asking the council to keep intact $2,131,892 in county support for the Anne Arundel County Food Bank, citing millions of pounds of food distributed, growing client numbers and gaps in federal assistance.
Leah Paley, chief executive officer of the Anne Arundel County Food Bank, and a series of partner pantry volunteers and board members told the County Council on May 14 that continued county funding is essential to maintain current services as food prices rise and federal programs contract.
Paley asked the council to "leave intact the $2,131,892 in financial support for the Anne Arundel County Food Bank" included in the FY26 proposal. She said that, working with network partners, the food bank distributed 4.1 million pounds of food and essentials last year and that the network averages more than 48,000 instances of assistance. Paley said that so far this year the food bank has distributed about 3.2 million pounds and that roughly 60% of those pounds — just over 1.8 million pounds — were purchased by the food bank to ensure more nutritious offerings than donations alone.
Multiple speakers reinforced that request. Brian Degg, board chair of the food bank and a District 7 resident, described the food bank’s mobile pantry and asked the council to keep the $2,131,892 line item in the budget. Jeremiah Bachukan, a board member who volunteers with local distributions, described relying on the food bank’s purchased fresh foods to supply partner pantries. Reverend Lauren Bloom of St. Luke's Episcopal Church said her small pantry provides roughly $17,000 of essential food items to visitors each month and that about a third of her visitors are children; she pleaded for the county to preserve the funding so partner pantries can continue weekly service. Other partner volunteers offered similar testimony about doubling of demand and local reliance on the food bank’s supply chain.
Why it matters: speakers portrayed the food bank as the backbone of a network of approximately 76 partner pantries and said reductions in county support would force service cuts at individual pantries. Paley and others noted recent cuts to USDA emergency food assistance and potential SNAP reductions as pressures increasing demand for county-supported food purchases.
Next steps: the council heard the testimony during the FY26 public hearing; no appropriation vote occurred that evening. Speakers asked the council to keep the food bank appropriation intact during deliberations.
Ending: Council review of the FY26 budget will determine whether the food bank’s county support remains at the proposed level.
