Senate Farm Bill Immediate Action Needed: Urge Your Senators to Co-Sponsor Gillibrand Amendment to Restore SNAP Cuts
Farm Bill Update
This week, the Senate is expected to begin consideration of the Farm Bill (S. 3240). The proposal includes a $4.5 billion cut to SNAP over 10 years by reducing the ability of states to take part in the “Heat and Eat” program. The cut would mean that an estimated 500,000 households a year would lose $90 per month in SNAP benefits (Congressional Budget Office estimate). Follow these links to FRAC’s ‘Heat and Eat’ one-pager (pdf).
Action for Week of June 4th: Urge Your Senators to Co-Sponsor the Gillibrand Amendment
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) has announced that she will introduce an amendment (pdf) to the Farm Bill that restores, over 10 years, the $4.5 billion cut to SNAP and invests $500 million in the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Snack program. She has circulated a “Dear Colleague Letter” in the Senate asking for cosponsors. Call Senators Murray and Cantwell and ask for their support by co-sponsoring the Gillibrand SNAP amendment. Offices should contact Kathryn Tanner in Sen. Gillibrand’s office, kathryn_tanner@gillibrand.senate.gov, to co-sponsor the amendment.
Call Now!
Senator Maria Cantwell: 202-224-3441 (Ask for Agriculture Legislative Assistant, Paul Wolfe)
Senator Patty Murray: 202-224-2621 (Ask for Agriculture Legislative Assistant, Adam Goodwin)
Tell Your Senators: Please support amendments to the proposed Farm Bill which support farmers, taxpayers, eaters, and the environment by:
- Capping crop insurance subsidies and requiring farmers who receive them to meet conservation requirements, saving billions of taxpayer dollars and protecting the environment.
- Restoring full funding for SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps) to make sure families have access to nutritious food.
- Including full mandatory funding for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program and the Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Program to help keep America farming.
- Supporting alternatives to genetically-engineered plant varieties by reserving 5% of research funding for classical plant breeding.
Including a ban on packer ownership of livestock to limit consolidation in the meat industry.
For more information about the Farm Bill visit www.nwfoodfight.org.