Speaker Paul Ryan put welfare reform at the top of the agenda for upcoming farm bill negotiations with the Senate, saying on Wednesday that the work-or-job-training requirements backed by House Republicans for SNAP recipients are vital for putting Americans to work. “We see this farm bill as pivotal for building a sturdier ladder of opportunity in America,” he said.
On a voice vote, the House called for bicameral negotiations to write a final version of the farm bill, with SNAP sure to be the salient issue. The Republican-controlled House, with no support from Democrats, passed a bill that would require an estimated 7 million “work-capable” adults aged 18 to 59 to work at least 20 hours a week or spend equivalent time in job training or workfare in order to receive SNAP benefits. Senators defeated a similar 25-hours-a-week proposal by a 2-to-1 margin. Their bill would not change SNAP rules.
President Trump, who has called for new or stronger work requirements for federal safety net programs, applauded passage of the House bill with its expanded work requirements. At present, SNAP participants must register for work and accept a suitable job if offered. SNAP would account for three-fourths of spending in the $87 billion-a-year farm bill.
“In order to be successful, the conference committee must put politics aside and focus on the needs of our farmers, families, and rural communities,” said Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts and Sen. Debbie Stabenow, the senior Democrat on the committee. “Rural America is counting on us to get this right.” Roberts and Stabenow, in an effort to pass a bipartisan bill, rejected radical changes to SNAP. In passing by an 86-11 vote, their bill amassed the highest number of favorable votes ever for a Senate farm bill.
The economy is booming and jobless rates are low, yet too many people are unemployed, said Ryan. “With all this momentum in our economy,” he said, “there could not be a better time to help more people move from welfare to work.”
Minnesota Rep. Collin Peterson, the Democratic leader on the House Agriculture Committee, has said he will side with Roberts and Stabenow against SNAP changes. Massachusetts Rep. Jim McGovern, the most prominent SNAP advocate in the House, is among the 18 conferees named by House Democrats.
House Agriculture chairman Michael Conaway, author of the House farm bill, will lead 29 Republicans on the conference committee. The Senate has yet to name its negotiators.
Leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture committees share the goal of enacting the new farm bill before the 2014 farm law expires on Sept. 30, which would avoid disruptions in the farm safety net. “I’m driven to get this done,” said Conaway. Peterson said, “Farmers and ranchers are staring a historically bad year in the face, and another hit would mean devastation for many of them.
Since 1990, Congress has taken months longer than expected to complete work on the farm bill. The 2014 farm law, for example, began as the 2012 farm bill.
For the list of Republican conferees, click here.
For the list of Democratic conferees, click here.