Commentary: On Thursday, the U.S. Senate passed its farm bill, which protects and strengthens the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), by an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 86-11. The Senate’s bill is in stark contrast to the partisan House farm bill narrowly passed last week, which if passed, would restrict food assistance to millions of Americans and hundreds of thousands New Mexicans through cuts and harmful changes to SNAP.
The House and Senate will now need to negotiate a final farm bill before sending it to the White House for President Trump’s signature.
“The Senate farm bill strengthens SNAP and protects millions of Americans’ access to healthy food. This is great news for New Mexico where SNAP is of particular importance. Over 450,000 New Mexicans rely on SNAP to put food on the table, including 40 percent of the state’s young children,” said Maria Griego, supervising attorney at the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty. “Congress should use the Senate farm bill as a basis for its final legislation. We urge our elected leaders to negotiate a final, bi-partisan bill that remains faithful to the Senate’s approach. We need a farm bill that grows income and employment opportunities for all Americans and bolsters, not weakens our country’s most effective anti-hunger program.”
The Senate bill would provide for modest improvements to SNAP’s operations and administration. It also would expand the 2014 farm bill’s pilot program to test new approaches to job training and other employment-related activities for SNAP participants.
Should a farm bill that is closer to the House’s version pass, up to 121,000 New Mexicans would face termination of SNAP, while tens of thousands of children and other family members would face reduced benefits for up to three years.
For more information on the House version of the 2018 farm bill and how the SNAP cuts would impact New Mexico, go to: http://nmpovertylaw.org/2018/04/proposed-cuts-to-snap-in-house-farm-bill-would-take-food-off-the-table-for-new-mexico-families/
For more information on SNAP in New Mexico, go to: http://nmpovertylaw.org/proposed-budget-will-increase-hunger-and-inequality-in-nm-february-2018/
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The New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty is dedicated to advancing economic and social justice through education, advocacy, and litigation. We work with low-income New Mexicans to improve living conditions, increase opportunities, and protect the rights of people living in poverty.