Hungry In Texas

 Hunger has worsened in Texas but remained steady nationwide, federal report says.

A new study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows household hunger remained steady from 2009 to 2010, but worsened in Texas during the years the state has been hailed as a model for weathering the economic downturn.
Built on a measure called “food insecurity,” the study was based on a survey of 45,000 households during the 2010 census, and found 14.5 percent of households had difficulty meeting their food needs — a statistic that was “essentially unchanged” from 2009, according to the agency. Last year saw a decline in the proportion of households with “severe” food insecurity across the country, too.
“In Texas, however, the three-year average food insecurity rate did increase, from 17.4 percent in 2007-2009 to the current rate of 18.8 percent in 2008-2010, according to the Austin-based Center for Public Policy Priorities.

The only higher figure was in Mississippi, at 19.4%.

Texas and Mississippi are tied for the highest proportion of minimum wage workers, too.