The bill that narrowly passed the U.S. House yesterday would make harsh cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), eliminating basic food assistance for millions of Americans – including at least 41,000 Minnesotans.
The bill would cut SNAP by nearly $40 billion over 10 years, essentially taking food off the table for many of our most vulnerable citizens: low-income parents, children, seniors, people with disabilities and others who use SNAP to get enough to eat.
The bill would harm some of the nation’s poorest children in families where parents are out of work. It would end assistance for many low-income working families where high child care and housing costs make it difficult to afford groceries. As long as the economy fails to create enough jobs, many people have no choice but to use SNAP to feed their families. SNAP is a cost-effective way to lift people out of poverty and should not be cut.
Yesterday’s vote is not the end of this debate: a conference committee is expected to work out differences between the House and Senate. The close vote is far from a mandate, and policymakers should reject these harsh cuts.
Here’s how Minnesota representatives voted:
- For the cuts: Michele Bachmann, John Kline and Erik Paulsen.
- Against the cuts: Keith Ellison, Betty McCollum, Rick Nolan, Collin Peterson and Tim Walz.
Please call your U.S. representative to say thank you for voting against the bill, or to express your disappointment for voting in favor of the bill.
-Leah Gardner and Nan Madden