Bread for the World reports on SNAP Cuts

bftw webThis week, every food stamp (also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP) family will see its grocery budget shrink!

In 2010, Congress voted twice to cut SNAP in order to pay for other priorities. As a result, $11 billion in SNAP cuts will go into effect this Friday. For a family of four, this means a loss of up to $36 a month.

As millions of families are bracing for these automatic benefit cuts, members of the House and Senate meet today to finalize a farm bill that will impact vital anti-hunger programs – specifically SNAP and international food aid.

We need your help. The voices of your member(s) of Congress are critical in our efforts to end hunger by protecting and strengthening SNAP and improving international food aid.

Call or email Rep. Chaka Fattah and Sen. Robert Casey and Sen. Pat Toomey today! Ask them to:

  1. Oppose cuts and harmful changes to SNAP. The House-passed farm bill cut SNAP by $39 billion, which could kick nearly 4 million people off the program and reduce benefits for thousands more. SNAP has already been cut by $11 billion, reducing every household’s monthly benefit and resulting in millions of lost meals. SNAP families cannot afford any cuts in the farm bill.
  2. Support the Senate-passed farm bill’s (S.954) international food aid provisions. These provisions will increase the flexibility, cost-effectiveness, and efficiency of food aid so that we can respond better to the complex challenges of global hunger and malnutrition today.

Forty-nine million Americans live at risk of hunger, and more than 1 billion people around the world live in extreme poverty. SNAP and international food aid programs must be protected in the farm bill. Email or call Rep. Chaka Fattah and Sen. Robert Casey and Sen. Pat Toomey at 800-826-3688 today!

Thank you for your advocacy.

Sincerely,

Eric Mitchell, Director of Government Relations, Bread for the World

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