Last week, food and agriculture policy experts met to discuss the 2018 Farm Bill. The discussion was hosted by AGree, a bipartisan food policy organization supported by eight of the largest food and ag-focused foundations. One key topic of conversation was the future of SNAP, which like other nutrition programs are funded through the Farm Bill and account for about 75% of its spending ($89 billion in 2016). Republican legislators have in the past proposed removing SNAP from the Farm Bill and converting it to a block grant. Several participants at the AGree event seemed confident that the SNAP program wouldn’t experience major cuts, let alone block-granting. But Eric Mitchell, from the anti-hunger advocacy organization Bread for the World, was more skeptical. He expressed concern that the Republican Congress might still pursue block-granting SNAP, even against the wishes of agriculture groups, and noted that several powerful Republicans have supported a move to block grants, including House Agriculture Committee chair Mike Conaway and House Speaker Paul Ryan.
Source: Civil Eats, 2/8/17, Farm Bill
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