Action Needed: Senate Moves Forward on $11.9 Billion Cut in SNAP/FS Benefits

From the Food Action and Research Center

Senate Moves Forward on $11.9 Billion Cut in SNAP Benefits; Legislation Needs to Be Fixed Before Passage

Breaking News
This morning the Senate, by a vote of 61 to 38, ended a filibuster on a bill that provides for enhanced Medicaid funding to states (FMAP) and preserves teachers' positions, but pays for much of it by reducing future SNAP/Food Stamps benefits by $11.9 billion. (To read FRAC's statement, click here). That bill still awaits final Senate passage this week and further action in the House in September - or possibly as early as next week if Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) calls the House back from recess. In addition, the manager's amendment to the Senate Agriculture Committee's Child Nutrition Reauthorization (CNR) bill (S. 3307), which could go to the Senate floor this week, also would cut SNAP benefits. In contrast, the more robust House version of CNR (H.R. 5504) contains no SNAP cuts.

Messages
1. Overall Message: Oppose cutting SNAP/Food Stamps to pay for other programs - regardless of the merits of those proposals.

2. FMAP Message: Support a fixed FMAP bill that does not take money from SNAP.

3. CNR Message: Support enactment of a robust Child Nutrition Reauthorization Bill that does not take money from SNAP. Senate Leaders should fix the CNR manager's amendment (S. 3307) and delete cuts to SNAP.

Immediate Action Step One - Circulate and Sign Group Letter
Immediately sign your group on to a letter opposing SNAP/Food Stamps cuts and circulate it to allied groups and urge them to sign on. Already 800 groups have signed on in three days. The interim deadline is August 5th at noon (the final letter will be kept open). Click here to sign on. (If you have any technical difficulties signing on, e-mail your sign-on information to emelcher@frac.org.)

Immediate Action Step Two - Tell Members of Congress and the White House to Fix the Bills and Stop SNAP Cuts
Contact Senators and the White House and tell them cutting SNAP/Food Stamps benefits, now or in the future, is unacceptable. For the Capitol Switchboard, call 202-225-3121; for the White House, call 202-456-1414. For toll-free calls, call 1-866-277-7617 and get connected first to the Capitol Switchboard and then routed to the White House. (Thanks to Voices for America's Children for use of its toll-free number).

Background - Legislative Vehicles
The proposal to pay for spending for other programs by rolling back the boost that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) made to SNAP benefit levels has cropped up in a variety of contexts. The FMAP bill would reduce SNAP benefits in April 2014 to generate $11.9 billion to pay for items such as aid to states and funding for teachers' salaries as well as to reduce the budget deficit. The manager's amendment to the Child Nutrition bill would reduce monthly SNAP benefits beginning August 2016 to generate $2.4 billion to pay for part of the Reauthorization (S. 3307). These bills should be fixed - they should not be paid for with low-income peoples' food benefits. Congress should not be voting to increase hunger.

For a brief from FRAC which provides greater background on the proposed cuts.

For new FRAC charts that provide data on the numbers of SNAP participants by state in May 2o10.

Longer Term Outlook
FRAC will be providing you with additional information in coming days on ways to build opposition to the SNAP benefit cuts during the August recess.

Feedback and Technical Assistance
Please share reports on your contacts and suggestions for additional actions to prevent the SNAP benefit cuts. For feedback and technical assistance, contact evollinger@frac.org and eteller@frac.org.