Republicans in the House and Senate are proposing to slash more than $230 billion from SNAP and school nutrition programs in order to fund more tax handouts for the wealthy and billion-dollar corporations. But it’s far from a done deal.
SNAP is not only our most effective anti-hunger program, it plays a crucial role in reducing poverty and improving health and economic outcomes. It’s also linked to better education outcomes and self-sufficiency, and plays an important role in supporting rural communities.
SNAP is one of the most cost-effective government programs in existence. Every dollar spent on SNAP generates $1.80 in local communities. Cuts to SNAP and school nutrition programs will have devastating consequences for generations to come.
Individual states currently pay a portion of the cost of administering SNAP, while the federal government pays the actual benefits. Implementing a $230 billion cut could force states to take on a portion of the cost of nutrition benefits for the first time, a radical change in the program that could lead to drastic cuts, increasing wait times for approval for benefits, or put a huge squeeze on states leading to slashed investments in other programs.
Cutting SNAP (and Medicaid, another right-wing target) also makes it harder for eligible families to obtain free or reduced-price school meals, summer food assistance for school-aged children (Summer EBT), and WIC benefits. School meal programs and Summer EBT automatically enroll eligible children using SNAP and Medicaid, while WIC agencies use automated systems to check for SNAP or Medicaid eligibility. In addition, the House Budget Committee has put forth numerous specific budget-cutting proposals, including a $12 billion cut to free school breakfast and lunch programs, affecting 24,000 schools nationwide.
Cutting funding for nutrition programs in order to pay for some of Trump’s $4.5 trillion tax handout―mostly to the wealthy and corporations―is an abomination.
Take Action
Subscribe
Donate
The United States remains the only high-income country that does not guarantee paid family and medical leave. As President Obama said in his June 21 Weekly Address, “Only three countries in the world report that they don’t offer paid maternity leave. Three. And the United States is one of them.”…
In April, CHN hosted a webinar on the House-passed budget – the so-called “Path to Prosperity” – put forth by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). The webinar exposed the truth about the “path” this budget would take us on – one in which massive cuts to housing, education, nutrition, and health care…
“I am a single father of two small children, a boy who is 5 and a little girl who is 3…. I have worked hard my entire life and have never been afraid of hard work but … it’s very hard to find work…. Unemployment isn’t something that people are…
Every day we see the good that comes from investing in people. We want to celebrate the achievements of Gena and her mother. Gena’s mom was kicked out of her parents’ home and wound up in abusive relationships. “Home life was chaotic and scary,” writes Gena for Our American Story,…
Congress lets corporations use overseas tax havens to dodge $90 billion in taxes each year. But it refuses to extend unemployment insurance for more than 3 million workers? When a five-story office building in the Cayman Islands is the official address of 18,857 companies, it’s a pretty good hint…
Last year, the 25 highest-earning hedge fund managers in the United States made a total of $21.15 billion – about 2.5 times as much as all the kindergarten teachers in America combined. (New York Times, Vox) In addition to the massive earnings, these hedge fund managers pay taxes at the lower…
You may have thought you’d heard it all when it comes to what Congress will choose to fight about, but that was before the Great Potato Fight of 2014. In the process of moving forward FY 2015 Agriculture Appropriations bills over the past month, members of both the House and Senate…