House Republicans unveiled legislation as part of President Donald Trump’s one “big, beautiful” bill that would make major reforms to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), otherwise known the food stamp program.
The House Agriculture Committee flagged its portion of the larger bill that would require states to cover a portion of the SNAP program, restrict eligibility for the benefit program, and block the federal government from increasing monthly benefits in the future.
The committee will hold a meeting Tuesday afternoon and the panel hopes to advance it out of committee.
The Republican-passed budget resolution tasked the House Agriculture Committee with finding at least $230 billion spending cuts.
The committee said it aims to restore the program to “its original intent” and promote “work, not welfare,” which would help save American taxpayer dollars and reinvest in American agriculture.
The Hill wrote:
It also includes language to increase the states’ 5 percent share of benefit costs in fiscal 2028 depending on its payment error rate. If the error rate is 6 percent or higher, states would be subject to a sliding scale that could see its share of allotments rise to a range of between 15 percent and 25 percent.
Democrats have sharply criticized the proposal, which they argue could lead to states cutting benefits on their own.
The bill would bar the Department of Agriculture from increasing the cost of the Thrifty Food Plan (TFP), which the government uses to determine the benefit amount based on a reevaluation or other ways.
Republicans chastised the Biden administration for using the 2021 TFP reevaluation to boost SNAP benefits by 21 percent, which goes against decades of ensuring cost-neutrality.
BiDEN'S AMERICA: As inflation soars in the Biden economy, working class Americans are struggling to be able to pay for groceries. So, naturally, China Joe has big plans for them. https://t.co/ZIB3FDBIGG
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) October 4, 2021
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) warned the Republican proposal would harm the ability to pass a bipartisan farm bill on the latter end of the year.
“Instead of working with Democrats to lower costs from President Trump’s across-the-board tariffs, House Republicans have decided to pull the rug out from under families by cutting the SNAP benefits that 42 million Americans rely on to put food on the table – all to fund a tax cut for billionaires,” Klobuchar remarked.
“This means more seniors, veterans, people with disabilities and children will go to bed hungry. It means farmers, who are already operating on razor-thin margins, will see billions in lost revenue. It will mean job losses and lost wages for everyone who is a part of the food system – from truck drivers to local grocers,” she added.
Sean Moran is a policy reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on X @SeanMoran3
