The budgets
adopted Senate Budget committee and passed by the House each cut more than $3
trillion over 10 years (2016-2025) from programs that serve low- and
moderate-income people. In dollar terms, the plans would cut these programs by
$3.7 trillion House) and $3.2 trillion (Senate), respectively, over the next
decade. The House plan turns SNAP into a block grant starting in 2021 and
cuts SNAP funds by $125 billion, or more than a third, from 2021 to
2025. While states would be left to decide ultimately whose benefits to
reduce or terminate, cuts of this magnitude would end or cut food assistance
benefits for millions of low-income families. The Senate bill does not
explicitly call for block-granting SNAP, but the general allocation of its
unspecified entitlement program cuts indicates that SNAP food assistance
provided through would likely be cut heavily.
Ironically, the
proposed cuts would affect more than 1 million people in the Congressional
districts represented by House Budget Committee Republicans. In 16 of the 22
districts, between 20 and 30% of SNAP households contained at least one person
aged 60 or over. In two it was well above 30%. In 12 districts between 50 and
60% of SNAP households contained children under age 18; in five districts the
percentage was between 45 and 50%; in four it was slightly above 60% percent;
and in one it was 70.6%.
Source: Center
for Budget and Policy Priorities, 3/23/15, SNAP Cuts;
Food Research Action Center, 3/25/15, SNAP
Cuts Hurt GOP, Too
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