CONGRESS REVIEWS SNAP

Congressional Republicans this week began a comprehensive review of the food stamp program to determine what is working – and to eliminate what in their view is not – a move that could affect thousands of recipients. The Republican view was probably expressed by Doug Besharov, a University of Maryland professor, who testified that food stamps and other social programs often provide a disincentive for the unemployed to find work who said, “The work-discouraging effect of safety-net programs should be neither surprising or controversial. Their very purpose is making getting a job less urgent”.

Even without Congressional action, many unemployed SNAP recipients may find they are no longer eligible after the end of the year—states' waivers from the requirement that “able-bodied" adults without dependents, work or be in a job training program for at least 20 hours a week to qualify for food stamps for more than 90 days in any three-year period expires at the end of the year, and Congress is not expected to extend it.

Source: Connecticut Mirror, 2/27/15, SNAP Review