Lawmakers should refuse to make any cuts in SNAP, which is expected to be a major issue in drafting the new farm bill, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) said on Tuesday. Congress expanded the work requirement for able-bodied adults enrolled in SNAP as part of debt limit legislation in June, and some House Republicans advocate using the farm bill as a way to place additional restrictions on food stamps.
The 2014 and 2018 farm policy laws were delayed by legislative squabbling over SNAP. The 2023 farm bill will be late in arrival, too. The House and Senate Agriculture committees have yet to introduce a first-round version of the farm bill, and the current law expires on Sept. 30.
Aiming at the staff-level work on farm bill provisions, the UCS said in a blog that it would be better to have no food and farm bill than a bad one.
“Many Americans continue to suffer from hunger, and it’s essential that the lifeline of SNAP be preserved for those who need this assistance to achieve a healthy diet,” wrote Melissa Kaplan, UCS senior manager of government affairs. “UCS opposes any cuts” to SNAP and other public nutrition programs, she said.
In addition, the farm bill should stay true to last year’s earmarking in the climate, health care, and tax bill of $20 billion for USDA conservation programs, with an emphasis on climate mitigation, said Kaplan. UCS and allies among small farm, anti-hunger, environmental, labor, and medical groups also called for better working conditions for farm and meat industry employees, better protection for farmworkers from extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and exposure to pesticides. “We deserve a food and farm bill that everyone can be proud of — and Congress should give us nothing less,” said the blog.
SNAP accounts for $4 of every $5 spent under the farm bill. At latest count, nearly 42 million people received monthly benefits averaging $178 per person.
The public nutrition chapter will remain in the farm bill, notwithstanding a suggestion by a senior member of the House Agriculture committee to write separate SNAP and “farm only” bills, said Agriculture chairman Glenn Thompson at the Missouri State Fair. The Pennsylvania Republican said, “First of all, it’s not going to happen in terms of splitting the nutrition title from the other 11 titles” of the farm bill, reported DTN/Progressive Farmer.
Founded in 1969, the Union of Concerned Scientists has around 250,000 members. The nonprofit organization says it “combines independent scientific research and citizen action to develop innovative, practical solutions and to secure responsible changes in government policy, corporate practices, and consumer choices.”