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Last Friday, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) closed the extended public comment period for their proposal to reform broad-based categorical eligibility for food stamps. The proposal would close a loophole that allowed thousands of Americans who did not qualify for food stamps to be eligible for benefits regardless.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The FreedomWorks Foundation’s Regulatory Action Center (RAC) drove 3,700 comments to the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) for its extended comment period on food stamp reforms, accounting for more than 44 percent of comments submitted during the extension. This brings the total number of comments submitted by the RAC to over 7,500 for this docket. Daniel Savickas, FreedomWorks Regulatory Policy Manager, commented:
Earlier this year, a recently retired Minnesota man by the name of Rob Undersander and his wife applied for federal benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps. After a three-week waiting period, Undersander was astonished to find that he had been granted federal benefits totalling $278 per month. After donating his benefits to charity, Undersander contacted his Congressmen in order to tell them about his peculiar situation.
On behalf of FreedomWorks activists nationwide, I urge you to contact your senators and ask them to vote NO on the Agriculture and Nutrition Act, otherwise known as the Farm Bill, H.R. 2. This bill provides millions in wasteful and unnecessary subsidies, and makes no meaningful reforms to agricultural spending.
FreedomWorks is proud to announce that our bill of the month for May 2018 is the Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act, H.R. 2832 and S. 1290, introduced by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) in the House and by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) in the Senate.
This summer, America will mark the 22nd anniversary of the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act. Reforming welfare was a prominent part of then-Speaker Newt Gingrich’s “Contract With America” as well as President Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign. After lengthy negotiations and a couple of vetoes by President Clinton, the measure was passed with bipartisan support. It promised to overhaul the way America handled welfare and government assistance for years to come.
Yesterday, the House Agriculture Committee released its Farm Bill proposal. The Farm Bill is an omnibus bill that needs to be passed every five years or so to address various issues related to American agriculture and the responsibilities of the Department of Agriculture (USDA). The last one was passed in 2014.
Congress created the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to reduce food insecurity among impoverished Americans. At the same time, Congress recognized that welfare programs must foster self-sufficiency. The Trump administration is looking for innovative solutions that improve both goals.
FreedomWorks has selected H.R. 5360, the Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act, as our bill of the month for October 2016. Introduced by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), this legislation will bring much-needed reform to federal entitlements, which account for nearly 50% of federal spending. This rate of federal spending and the welfare state designed by leftists are both unsustainable and impractical. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) has introduced the Senate companion bill, S. 3047.
FreedomWorks Foundation, American Legislative Exchange Council, Tea Party Patriots and Committee to Unleash Prosperity in partnership with a coalition of conservative organizations and prominent individuals, launched the Save Our Country Task Force.