No increase in Social Security benefits means no increase in Ohio Works First cash assistance benefits

The fact that Social Security benefits are not increasing for the second straight year means that cash assistance benefits for Ohio’s poorest citizens are also staying the same for the second straight year. This is despite the fact that the cost of living is increasing in the state and the Ohio Works First benefits already do not provide enough funding to get a family up to even half of the federal poverty level. For more information, click here.

More and more people do not have enough money to buy the food they need

A new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows that more than 17.4 million families in America, or 51 million people, were "food insecure" in 2009. In Ohio, nearly 680,000 families, or 14.8% of all families in the state, were food insecure in 2009, according to the report.

The report also explains that number of people in Ohio and all across the country who do not have enough food to eat has increased significantly in recent years.

Click here to read an article from The Washington Post about the report.

Click here to read an article from The Columbus Dispatch about the report, including detailed information about what the report says about food insecurity in Ohio.