The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced a new proposed “public charge” rule that will endanger the health, safety and well-being of kids across the nation. This proposal would dramatically expand what counts against immigrant families when applying for green cards, putting parents in an impossible position of choosing between food and keeping their family together.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because we’ve been here before.
You may recall how our culinary champions stepped forward during the first Trump administration, using your voices and influence to push back against an earlier version of the public charge rule. Although the previous rule did move forward at the time, your advocacy made the consequences impossible to ignore and helped build the national pressure that ultimately contributed to the policy’s undoing.
But now, DHS has proposed rescinding the existing framework of protections by stripping out clarity from the guidance and opening the door to broadening what can be used against immigrants applying for green cards. These families - our neighbors, coworkers and friends - could see DHS count the use of any health or social service program, past or present, against them, including SNAP, WIC and Medicaid, even when parents are simply participating in programs their families are eligible for under federal law. More details can be found here.
No Kid Hungry is mobilizing supporters to speak out, and we’d be deeply grateful for your support again at this critical moment. The Department of Homeland Security is moving quickly, but they must accept public comments before finalizing the rule. Your voice can help stop changes that would harm children, create fear in communities and undermine the health and wellbeing of families nationwide.
Below is a draft comment you can customize and submit to the Federal Register. Comments must be submitted before 11:59 pm on December 19, 2025.
As a culinary professional who works every day to feed my community, I’m deeply concerned that the proposed changes to the public charge rule will push immigrant families, many of them parents of U.S. citizen children, away from essential nutrition programs. Working at the intersection of food and community, I see every day how ensuring children have the food, healthcare and stability they need strengthens the country as a whole. Forcing families to weigh their children’s well-being against their immigration status runs counter to the values that make our communities strong.
If enacted, the proposed rule would jeopardize the long-term health and potential of children who will one day be our civic leaders, innovators and even chefs of tomorrow. DHS itself acknowledges these changes could increase hunger, strain the healthcare system and deepen poverty. From the vantage point of someone committed to nourishing people, it is difficult to understand why we would knowingly adopt a policy that harms children, undermines public health, and weakens future economic and community vitality. I urge DHS to withdraw this flawed proposal and maintain the 2022 framework that offers clear guardrails, respects decades of precedent and prevents a chilling effect that harms children, families and the communities we all feed.