Safety Net

When life knocks us down, we all can use a helping hand to get back on our feet. SNAP, TANF, WIC and other safety net programs provide essential assistance to hundreds of thousands of Alabamians who struggle with challenges like unemployment, health problems or wages that are too low to make ends meet. Arise studies the importance of safety net programs to our society and economy and examines the need to continue making strong investments in them.

Fact Sheet

Federal SNAP cuts underscore Alabama’s need to protect and increase food access

Alabama’s food insecurity rates are among the worst in the country. More than 1 in 6 people in our state (17%) face food insecurity, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. And that share is even larger for children: Nearly 1 in 4 Alabama children (23%) live in households with food insecurity. Food assistance [...]
Issue
Safety Net
Date
January 13, 2026
Author
LaTrell Clifford Wood
Resources

Las prioridades legislativas de Alabama Arise para 2026

Más de 150 grupos miembros de Alabama Arise y más de 1,500 miembros individuales eligen todos los años nuestras prioridades legislativas. Este proceso garantiza que los habitantes de Alabama más afectados por la pobreza participen de las decisiones. A continuación se enumeran las prioridades que nuestros miembros eligieron para 2025. Para obtener una versión de este [...]
Issues
Budgets, Criminal Justice, Health, Public Transportation, Safety Net, Tax Reform, Other Issues, Economic Opportunity, Voting Rights, Coronavirus, Medicaid Expansion
Date
December 18, 2025
Author
Alabama Arise
Member Resources

Alabama Arise 2026 legislative priorities

More than 150 Alabama Arise member groups and nearly 2,000 individual members choose our legislative priorities each year. This process ensures that Alabamians most impacted by poverty have a seat at the table. Below are the priorities that our members selected for 2026. For a PDF version of this document, click here or click the [...]
Issues
Budgets, Criminal Justice, Health, Housing, Public Transportation, Safety Net, Tax Reform, Other Issues, Economic Opportunity, Voting Rights, Medicaid Expansion
Date
November 4, 2025
Author
Alabama Arise
Resources

Keep your EBT benefits safe from cyber attacks

Here are some tips to prevent criminals from stealing EBT benefits, plus some steps to take if you believe someone has stolen your benefits.

Issue
Safety Net
Date
November 4, 2025
Author
Alabama Arise
Fact Sheet

What we know about the SNAP changes in the new federal budget law

The federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act does not immediately cut or end food assistance benefits for people who now receive them. People who are now getting food assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) should continue receiving their monthly benefits normally for the foreseeable future, just as they have in the past. But [...]
Issues
Budgets, Health, Safety Net
Date
July 9, 2025
Author
Carol Gundlach
Letters & Testimony

Alabama Arise, 49 partner groups urge state lawmakers to oppose federal SNAP cost shift

Congressional leaders are considering cuts to food assistance and other human services in a push to offset the cost of tax cuts for wealthy households. The amount of potential SNAP and health care cuts in the budget reconciliation bill that the U.S. House passed in May would be roughly equal to the cost of extending [...]
Issues
Budgets, Safety Net
Date
June 9, 2025
Author
Alabama Arise
Letters & Testimony

Alabama Arise, 111 partner groups urge Congress to oppose cuts to Medicaid, SNAP

Congressional leaders are considering cuts to health coverage, food assistance and other human services in a push to offset the cost of tax cuts for wealthy households. The amount of potential Medicaid and SNAP cuts in the House budget resolution would be roughly equal to the cost of extending tax breaks for the wealthiest 1% [...]
Issues
Budgets, Health, Safety Net
Date
February 25, 2025
Author
Alabama Arise
Fact Sheet

School breakfast for all: What Alabama can do to help feed all of our kids

By Carol Gundlach, senior policy analyst, and LaTrell Clifford Wood, hunger policy advocate | January 2025 Overview Alabama can and should do more to equip our children and our schools for success. One big step would be to provide school breakfast for all our children. And our lawmakers can make major progress toward that goal [...]
Issues
Health, Safety Net, Tax Reform, Other Issues
Date
January 24, 2025
Author
Alabama Arise
Resources

Las prioridades legislativas de Alabama Arise para 2025

Más de 150 grupos miembros de Alabama Arise y más de 1,500 miembros individuales eligen todos los años nuestras prioridades legislativas. Este proceso garantiza que los habitantes de Alabama más afectados por la pobreza participen de las decisiones. A continuación se enumeran las prioridades que nuestros miembros eligieron para 2025. Para obtener una versión de este [...]
Issues
Budgets, Criminal Justice, Health, Public Transportation, Safety Net, Tax Reform, Voting Rights, Medicaid Expansion
Date
December 23, 2024
Author
Alabama Arise
Member Resources

Alabama Arise 2025 legislative priorities

More than 150 Alabama Arise member groups and more than 1,500 individual members choose our legislative priorities each year. This process ensures that Alabamians most impacted by poverty have a seat at the table. Below are the priorities that our members selected for 2025. For a PDF version of this document, click here or click [...]
Issues
Budgets, Criminal Justice, Health, Public Transportation, Safety Net, Tax Reform, Voting Rights, Medicaid Expansion
Date
October 23, 2024
Author
Alabama Arise
All Issue Resources