A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THAT THE TASK FORCE TO END HUNGER CONTINUE ITS EFFORTS TO ELIMINATE HUNGER AND FOOD INSECURITY IN NEW MEXICO AND WORK WITH STATE AGENCIES AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR TO ENCOURAGE AND COORDINATE THE TANGIBLE STEPS IDENTIFIED IN ITS 2004 REPORT, "TOGETHER WE CAN: ENDING HUNGER IN NEW MEXICO".

     WHEREAS, the New Mexico task force to end hunger is composed of a group of interested and concerned members of the general public and state agency officials and has met regularly for the last year in response to House Joint Memorial 84, which was approved during the second session of the forty-sixth legislature; and

     WHEREAS, the task force, created after the governor held the hunger summit on October 16-17, 2003, took on the responsibility to address with tangible steps and concrete proposals the high rates of hunger and food insecurity and related issues of food access, distribution and sufficiency within New Mexico and to engage state agencies in a coordinated and collaborative movement toward reducing and eliminating hunger and food insecurity in New Mexico; and

     WHEREAS, the task force, pursuant to House Joint Memorial 84, presented a report entitled "Together We Can: Ending Hunger in New Mexico" to the interim legislative health and human services committee; and

     WHEREAS, the report drew upon the knowledge and experience of participants of the task force after the 2003 summit at meetings on April 14 and September 17, 2004, and the report was guided and drafted by a steering committee, which met on a monthly basis throughout the year; and

     WHEREAS, "Together We Can: Ending Hunger in New Mexico" outlines six goals, each with a series of objectives and tangible and concrete recommendations that cover an array of food, nutritional and agricultural issues, and calls for action that will involve legislative consideration of specific enactments and appropriations and will require more definite state agency administrative coordination and changes in procedures;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the task force to end hunger, guided by its steering committee, be requested to continue its work and efforts on hunger and food insecurity issues that afflict New Mexico; and that the steering committee of the task force convene the full task force membership at an appropriate time or times in the course of the coming year for a review of its efforts; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force to end hunger draw upon the resources of relevant state agencies and directly involve and connect with the designated staff of state agencies that are concerned with food and nutrition programs, agricultural production and rural transportation, including the aging and long-term services department; the New Mexico department of agriculture; the children, youth and families department; the public education department; the department of health; the human services department; and the department of transportation; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that these departments commit reasonable resources, including designating staff, to the implementation of the recommendations of the task force report, work with the steering committee of the task force and enter into a memorandum of understanding to facilitate cooperation among the departments in working with the task force to end hunger; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force to end hunger, both its participants and steering committee, involve, use and draw upon the resources of private persons, groups and nonprofit organizations that participated in the governor's hunger summit or that have otherwise shown concern about hunger and food insecurity in New Mexico; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the steering committee of the task force report to the interim legislative health and human services committee regarding the status of the implementation of the report's recommendations by November 1, 2005; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the director of the New Mexico department of agriculture and the secretaries of aging and long-term services; children, youth and families; public education; health; human services; and transportation.