Heartland Signal: Proposed Farm Bill “would cut an estimated $30 billion from the SNAP food assistance program over the next ten years, according to a report from the nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities”
Wednesday, May 29, 2024
LA CROSSE, Wis. – In case you missed it, last week Congressman Derrick Van Orden voted to advance a Republican-written Farm Bill proposal out of the House Agriculture Committee, despite billions in potential cuts to food assistance programs that support tens of millions of Americans.
According to reports, if the food assistance cuts in this bill were enacted, it would make the largest cuts to SNAP benefits since 1996. During markup of the bill in committee last week, Van Orden also voted against an amendment which would have stripped cuts to SNAP out of the bill.
This isn’t the first time Van Orden has voted in favor of slashing food assistance programs. Last year, he voted for the Default on America Act, which would have threatened SNAP benefits for 14,000 Wisconsinites, cut Meals on Wheels access for more than 1 million seniors nationwide, and jeopardized WIC benefits for nearly 1.2 million women, babies, and children.
“Food assistance programs help lower costs and support families across Wisconsin, but Congressman Van Orden voted in favor of the largest cuts to these benefits in nearly 30 years,” said Opportunity Wisconsin Program Director Meghan Roh. “Congressman Van Orden should reverse his position and fight to remove these devastating cuts from the Farm Bill as it continues to make its way through Congress. The rest of Wisconsin’s congressional delegation, including Congressman Bryan Steil, should also speak out against these cuts and work to protect food assistance programs.”
Heartland Signal: Van Orden and GOP colleagues advance food stamp cuts through House Agriculture Committee
Early Friday morning, Republicans in the House Agriculture Committee advanced a bill that would cut SNAP benefits and weaken environmental protections if passed into law.
The legislation, known as the Farm Bill, passed mostly on party lines through the Republican-controlled Agriculture Committee after a vote of 33-21. Just four Democrats joined all Republicans on the committee in getting the $1.5 trillion spending bill passed.
Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R) heavily endorsed the bill during the committee and on social media, where he claimed it will “deliver for our farmers and agricultural producers.”
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Despite overwhelming Republican support, Democrats took the GOP to task for supporting a bill that would cut an estimated $30 billion from the SNAP food assistance program over the next ten years, according to a report from the nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The Farm Bill will also reportedly allow states to outsource the SNAP program’s process for determining which households are eligible to private corporations, potentially making it harder for families to enroll.
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