Our 2025 Policy Agenda highlights the role that government — at every level — can play in reducing hunger and poverty in our region.
Although we distributed enough food for more than 64 million meals in 2024, the food bank cannot address hunger alone. Governments play a critical role in reducing hunger and poverty at the broadest scale, and we’re seeking the support of policymakers to enact changes that advance these goals.
Our policy agenda has been informed by hundreds of conversations with elected leaders, academic researchers, and community members, as well as the insights of our clients and partner nonprofits. We have put forth a series of policy recommendations, speaking to ways in which governmental leaders, across all jurisdictions, can take steps to alleviate hunger and poverty in the year ahead. Together, we can help enable long-term food security, financial empowerment, and overall well-being for our neighbors across the region.
Our service area covers all of the District of Columbia, as well as communities in Maryland and Virginia, and we have produced separate 2024 policy agendas for each state-level jurisdiction.
Our key policy priorities include approaches that would:
- Strengthen programs like SNAP;
- Increase access to nutritious meals at school;
- Improve the efficacy of The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP); and
-
Promote Food Is Medicine initiatives that pair food with health care.
2025 Policy Agendas
The food bank operates across three unique state-level jurisdictions: the state of Maryland, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Virginia. We have produced 2025 policy agendas for Maryland and Virginia, and will be releasing a DC agenda later this spring.
