NEW YORK – Following is a weekly newsletter from U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand:
Here’s what she’s been up to this week:
1. Meeting with community leaders
Kirsten attended the National Action Network Convention in New York City to meet with faith, community, and elected leaders from across the state.
They discussed key challenges facing communities of color, including voting rights, maternal health, and public safety
2. Fighting food insecurity
Thousands of New Yorkers live in food deserts – areas where residents have little to no access to grocery stores that sell healthy and affordable food, especially fresh fruits and vegetables.
Kirsten has a plan to get nutritious food to communities that need it. She stood with local leaders at Hunts Point Produce Market in the Bronx to announce her Healthy Food Financing Initiative Reauthorization Act. The legislation would provide $50 million in annual federal funding to attract grocery stores to food deserts and help fight hunger in low-income neighborhoods nationwide.
3. Master Plan on Aging
Kirsten visited senior and community centers in Penn Yan and Hogansburg and on Long Island to talk about her Master Plan on Aging – a comprehensive framework to make sure older Americans can age with dignity. Her plan would protect and expand Social Security and Medicare and help ensure that older adults can afford food, housing, and health care.
4. READ: Kirsten on SNAP
Kirsten published an op-ed arguing against proposed cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). SNAP helps feed over 40 million Americans – most of them children, veterans, older adults, and individuals with disabilities – and enjoys strong, bipartisan support among a majority of voters.
Read the full op-ed here.
5. $$$ for Boys & Girls Clubs
Last year, Kirsten secured $1 million in federal funding to help build a new Boys & Girls Club clubhouse for children of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe in Akwesasne. She visited the current center for a tour and to meet with the children who participate in the organization’s afterschool, summer, athletic, and meal programs.
6. Getting New Yorkers enrolled in Medicare
When a recent retiree faced months-long delays while trying to enroll in Medicare Part B, she reached out to Kirsten’s office for help. The office contacted the Social Security Administration directly on her behalf and she was enrolled shortly after.
Individual casework is Kirsten’s top priority. If you need help with a federal agency, contact her here.
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