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Broad Public Testimony Urges Full Funding for Self‑Sufficiency Programs in SB 5526
Summary
Dozens of advocates, service providers and clients urged the Joint Subcommittee on Human Services to fully fund Self‑Sufficiency programs in Senate Bill 5526, including Double Up Food Bucks, hunger-response funds, domestic-violence survivor assistance, refugee case management and youth homelessness services.
Salem — During the March 13 public hearing on Senate Bill 5526, dozens of individuals and nonprofit leaders delivered two-minute testimonies urging full funding for self-sufficiency programs that support food access, survivors of domestic violence, refugees and youth experiencing homelessness.
Who spoke and why: Rachel Ward, director of the Farmers’ Market Fund, said the Double Up Food Bucks program matches every dollar of SNAP spent at participating outlets with an additional dollar to buy Oregon-grown fruits and vegetables; she said Double Up operated at 216 farmers markets, farm stands, CSAs and grocery stores and that in 2024 it facilitated about $5,500,000 in produce purchases. Ward and other witnesses asked the committee to continue state funding so that the program can leverage federal SNAP spending and expand reach.
Partners for Hunger Free Oregon (Sarah Weber Ogden and Chris Baker) and Oregon Hunger Task Force representatives testified that SNAP and complementary programs such as Double Up and the Elderly Simplified Application Process help reduce food insecurity, which has risen since federal emergency pandemic benefits ended. Professor Mark Edwards of…
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