OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Snap Cuts

Floor Speech

Date: July 10, 2012
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Unemployed and Low-Income Entitlements and the Safety Net

Mr. BACA. Madam Speaker, tomorrow the House Agriculture Committee will mark up the farm bill that will devastate many of our children, seniors, and veterans. This misguided bill will cut $16 billion from the SNAP program, a program that puts food on the table for over 46 million Americans.

This debate isn't just about the numbers; there is a human cost. If these cuts are allowed to stand, 2 to 3 million low-income individuals will lose SNAP eligibility, and 280,000 children will lose access to free school meals. These are children who may have the only meal provided to them in school, and it will change their attitudes and their behaviors in school. And 210,000 households in my State of California will receive reduced benefit levels.

In California, 6 million people rely on SNAP, including 2 million children. In my district, they suffer from the fourth highest rate of food insecurity in the Nation.

It is a moral responsibility that we protect the SNAP program. We must pass a responsible farm bill that includes no nutritional cuts.


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