Republicans in the House and Senate are proposing to slash more than $230 billion from SNAP and school nutrition programs in order to fund more tax handouts for the wealthy and billion-dollar corporations. But it’s far from a done deal.
SNAP is not only our most effective anti-hunger program, it plays a crucial role in reducing poverty and improving health and economic outcomes. It’s also linked to better education outcomes and self-sufficiency, and plays an important role in supporting rural communities.
SNAP is one of the most cost-effective government programs in existence. Every dollar spent on SNAP generates $1.80 in local communities. Cuts to SNAP and school nutrition programs will have devastating consequences for generations to come.
Individual states currently pay a portion of the cost of administering SNAP, while the federal government pays the actual benefits. Implementing a $230 billion cut could force states to take on a portion of the cost of nutrition benefits for the first time, a radical change in the program that could lead to drastic cuts, increasing wait times for approval for benefits, or put a huge squeeze on states leading to slashed investments in other programs.
Cutting SNAP (and Medicaid, another right-wing target) also makes it harder for eligible families to obtain free or reduced-price school meals, summer food assistance for school-aged children (Summer EBT), and WIC benefits. School meal programs and Summer EBT automatically enroll eligible children using SNAP and Medicaid, while WIC agencies use automated systems to check for SNAP or Medicaid eligibility. In addition, the House Budget Committee has put forth numerous specific budget-cutting proposals, including a $12 billion cut to free school breakfast and lunch programs, affecting 24,000 schools nationwide.
Cutting funding for nutrition programs in order to pay for some of Trump’s $4.5 trillion tax handout―mostly to the wealthy and corporations―is an abomination.
From our friends at the YWCA:
We invite YWCAs and allied groups to focus their events and organizing on the myriad of racial justice issues that impact the health and safety of communities of color. Most importantly, we invite you to explore how From Declarations to Change: Addressing Racism as a Public Health Crisis can advance the work of justice in your community and empower people of color.
Structural racism plays a large role in determining the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age. These factors affect people’s access to quality housing, education, food, transportation, political power, and other social determinants of health. Understanding and addressing systemic racism from this public health perspective is crucial to eliminating racial and ethnic inequities, and to improving opportunity and well-being across communities.
Our collective efforts can root out injustice, transform institutions, and create a world that sees women, girls, and people of color the way we do: Equal. Powerful. Unstoppable.