WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) released the following statement calling on President Trump and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to immediately release critical Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for November. President Trump and the USDA have the full legal authority and available resources in reserve to fund SNAP for November, but thus far, they are refusing to do so.
“Here in Wisconsin, FoodShare helps 700,000 families put food on the table, children go to school ready to learn, and our farmers sell their products. The families that rely on FoodShare are our friends, our neighbors, and folks we go to Church or Synagogue with – and there is just no reason they should go hungry because Donald Trump is playing political games,” said Senator Baldwin. “We need to be crystal clear on what is happening here: Donald Trump has the legal authority and money to make sure not a single American loses their food assistance – heck, he even had a plan on his website to do it — but he is now choosing not to act. While we wait for Republicans to join us to reopen the government and stop health care costs from skyrocketing, I’m calling on President Trump to make the emergency SNAP funding available and prevent Wisconsin families from going hungry before it is too late.”
Just weeks ago, USDA explicitly said on its website that it would use its contingency fund to continue paying SNAP benefits. However, USDA has now deleted that plan from its website and changed tune – instead attempting to use food assistance for families as a political tool.
In Wisconsin alone, approximately 700,000 people are at risk of losing their food assistance benefits if the USDA does not utilize available funding to continue the program. Of those receiving assistance, 270,000 are children and 108,000 are senior citizens. Additionally, every Wisconsin Republican in Congress voted earlier this year for the largest cut to the SNAP program in history.
An online version of this release is available here.
