President Trump put his weight behind new or stronger work requirements for “work-capable people” enrolled in federal welfare programs in an Executive Order released on Tuesday. Trump ordered eight federal departments, including USDA, to see if stronger work rules are needed within the “public assistance programs of their respective agencies.” Meanwhile, House Democrats say SNAP faces a radical, and unworkable, overhaul at the hands of Republicans in the name of work requirements and job training.
House Agriculture chairman Michael Conaway is expected later this week to propose stricter time limits on SNAP benefits to able-bodied adults who do not work at least 20 hours a week. States would be required to offer a slot in workfare or job-training programs to people in danger of losing benefits. Conaway says there would be no overall change in SNAP spending but “a significant, unheard-of amount of money” will be moved into the “education and training” programs that are now a small adjunct to SNAP operations in each state.
“What they are trying to do with food stamps is not going to work,” said Rep Collin Peterson, the lead Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee. States will need to quickly create programs capable of handling 3 million people, he said, without enough federal funding to be effective. It is “designed to be a hassle factor so people drop out of the program.”
Conaway says if anyone leaves SNAP, it will be voluntary – self-selection – and a sign of lack of interest in self-improvement. Democratic staff workers say Conaway’s plan will cut SNAP buy $20 billion over 10 years, possibly reduce enrollment by 3 million people, expand the number of people subject to time limits on benefits and reduce the power of states to provide benefits for more than 90 days because of high unemployment or lack of jobs in an area.
At present, able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) are limited to 90 days of food stamps in a three-year period unless they work at least 20 hours a week or spend an equivalent amount of time in workfare or training. Only five states provide workfare or training slot for ABAWDs approaching the 90-day limit.
Conservative Republicans have focused welfare reform efforts on ABAWDs for years. The House defeated the farm bill in 2013 because of amendments hitting ABAWDs. Democrats said the cuts were too extreme and conservatives said they did not go far enough; both groups voted against the bill.
“Welfare enrollment for able-bodied adults is at record highs,” said the White House. Yet, the jobless rate is a low 4.1 percent, the lowest since 2000, and businesses say they cannot find enough workers, it said, before listing 16 million able-bodied adults on SNAP and 28 million on Medicaid. “Work is the solution. Adding or enforcing work requirements for able-bodied adults on welfare is an effective solution to help millions of Americans regain their independence.”
In his executive order, Trump said his administration will reform the welfare system. First on the list of nine principles was “improve employment outcomes and economic independence (including by strengthening existing work requirements for work-capable people and introducing new work requirements when legally permissible).”
Many of the able-bodied adults who receive food stamps are exempt from time limits because they are taking care of children or other household members or they work enough hours to maintain eligibility. The antihunger Food Research and Action Center says slow wage growth has blocked some SNAP recipients from moving up the income ladder. In some other cases, ABAWDs are employed but they cannot line up a steady work load to meet the 20-hour limit.
The leaders of the Senate Agriculture Committee told the North American Agricultural Journalists that they are pursuing a bipartisan farm bill that can win easy passage with broad support. “It would be a huge mistake to pass a partisan farm bill out of the House,” said Sen Debbie Stabenow, the senior Democrat on the panel. “I hope the House doesn’t do that.”
Peterson said that Conaway is unyielding in his plan to overhaul SNAP. Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee refused last month to discuss changes to the program. Some details have been released but the Democrats say Conaway has not shared enough information.
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue supports stricter enforcement of time limits on SNAP recipients to prevent the “permanent lifestyle” of federal support. In late February, the USDA asked for public comments on how to enforce more stringently the 90-day limit on ABAWDs who do not work at least 20 hours a week.
“Providing people with the training and skills they need to find gainful employment will place them on the path to self-sufficiency and restore the dignity of work,” said Perdue in a statement after Trump signed the executive order.
To read the executive order on “reducing poverty in America by promoting opportunity,” click here.
For the fact sheet on economic mobility, click here.