Anti-poverty Legislation announced

New legislation was recently propsed that would simplify the food stamp process and also create additional grants for nonprofit organizations. The bill, entitled the Anti-Hunger Empowerment Act of 2006, was submitted by U.S. Reps. Anthony Weiner and Jose E. Serrano after the US Census bureau released its most recent poverty statistics for NYC. City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has also announced several plans to help reduce hunger and poverty in NYC. Her plan is to reduce the number of food stamp eligible un-enrolled individuals by half, increasing enrollment by about 300,000. Joel Berg, Executive Director of the Coalition Against Hunger, stated in the Queens Tribune Online that he was moved by her message and her goal to reach the 50 percent reduction of food stamp eligible un-enrolled inidivuals.