Emergency Food Network’s (EFN) mission, to provide Pierce County with a consistent, diverse, and nutritious food supply so that no person goes hungry, calls upon us to understand and respond to the barriers that prevent people from accessing food. Sometimes those barriers are transportation, cost of living, or limited food availability in certain neighborhoods. Sometimes they are fear and uncertainty.
Pierce County is home to vibrant immigrant and refugee communities that are an important part of our local economy, culture, and neighborhoods. Like all families, immigrant families experience job loss, rising food costs, medical emergencies, and other circumstances that can make food assistance necessary from time to time.
When people are uncertain whether it is safe to seek help, many choose not to ask for it.
What’s Changing:
In July, the Department of Homeland Security announced changes to how immigration officials may consider participation in certain public assistance programs when reviewing some applications for lawful permanent residency and immigration status changes.
For more than twenty years, families have been repeatedly assured that participation in federal nutrition programs such as SNAP and WIC would not jeopardize future immigration opportunities. The new rule changes that long-standing understanding.
While the policy itself is complex and affects different families in different ways, one consequence is already clear: fear and uncertainty are likely to discourage eligible families from seeking assistance, even when they qualify for help or when the programs they use are not affected by the rule. National hunger organizations refer to this as a “chilling effect.” When people are uncertain whether asking for help today could affect their future tomorrow, many decide not to ask at all.
What It Could Mean for Our Communities:
Locally, we expect these changes may disproportionately affect immigrant and mixed-status families throughout Pierce County.
A mixed-status family is a household where family members hold different immigration statuses. In many of these households, uncertainty about how one person’s participation in a program could affect another family member creates confusion and fear that extends far beyond the people directly impacted by the rule itself.
The result is often that entire families choose not to access services they need. It means seniors skipping food assistance because they are worried about loved ones. It means families turning to emergency food systems later, after situations have become significantly more difficult.
What EFN Wants Our Community to Know:
As of today, EFN is not aware of any changes affecting access to food distributed through our partner food banks. Equally important, personal information is not required in order to receive food assistance from an EFN partner food bank.
Many food banks ask for information such as names, addresses, zip codes, or household sizes because those details support reporting requirements, help organizations understand community needs, and assist with securing resources for the community. However, that information is not required in order to receive food. individuals may decline to provide personal information and can still receive food.
Because of that, we want our immigrant neighbors and mixed-status families to know that food remains available through EFN partner food banks throughout Pierce County.
If you know someone who may be uncertain about whether it is safe to seek help, we encourage you to share EFN’s Find Food Map and remind them that they can access food without providing identifying information.
At EFN, we believe food is a basic human right, and no one should have to choose between feeding their family and protecting their future.
What You Can Do:
Share EFN’s Find Food Map with friends, family members, faith communities, and neighbors.
Encourage people who may be hesitant to seek support to connect with their local food bank.
Stay informed and engage with elected leaders about policies that affect food access in our communities.
Most importantly, help us spread the message that everyone deserves to eat.
Sources and Additional Information
Food Research & Action Center (FRAC): DHS Public Charge Rule Puts Fear Over Food Access
CBS News: DHS expands public charge considerations for some immigration applications