Congress Mulls Cuts to Food Stamps Program Amid Record Number of Recipients

http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2011/05/congress-mulls-cuts-to-food-stamps-program-amid-record-number-of-recipients.html

Congress Mulls Cuts to Food Stamps Program Amid Record Number of Recipients

May 31, 2011 11:48 AM

ABC News' Huma Khan reports: Congress is under pressure to cut the rapidly rising costs of the federal government’s food stamps program at a time when a record number of Americans are relying on it.

The House Appropriations Committee today will review the fiscal year 2012 appropriations bill for the Department of Agriculture that includes $71 billion for the agency’s “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.” That’s $2 billion less than what President Obama requested but a 9 percent increase from 2011, which, critics say, is too large given the sizeable budget deficit.

....

The Republicans’ 2012 budget plan proposes changing SNAP from an entitlement to a block-grant program that would be tailored for each individual state, much like their proposal for Medicaid. States would no longer receive open-ended subsidies and the aid would be contingent on work or job training. It would also limit funding for the program.

The president’s 2012 budget, however, goes in a completely opposite direction. It aims to make requirements less stringent by temporarily suspending for one year the time limit for certain age groups without dependents. The president also suggested restoring benefit cuts that were included in the Child Nutrition Reauthorization bill last year.

Not dinner

PH

medicaid, social security, poverty, homeless and disabled problems all at once.

We've got to save money so we can rage more war and feed the MIC profits. Forget "we the people." The US is now all about "we the profiteers."

In Brazil there is a federal program, which gives every family in need a certain quantity of food, x pounds of rice, butter, milk, etc. I think this should be available forever to all Americans. poor, working class, middle class. A certain number of pounds of fresh vegetables and fruit. I would really use it right now even though I am not poor. Instead of those stupid checks Bush sent out to everyone which cost billions, why not a basket of food for everyone. Local gardens and producers could be used instead of giant agro. A nutritionist would determine what the food is, and go with seasonable fruits and vegetables, and it would be available to all, not just people of a certain income level. (If you are rich or don't need any help, you simply don't go get yours and theere is more for those who need it.) ) I know that volunteers would come forward to help distribute it to people who aren't mobile. I think it would go well with socialized medicine. I don't think ending hunger would cost very much at all. the profits from extinguishing the health insurance industry or ending just one of the wars would be enough to feed everyone something nutritious every day, I'm sure.

:grr:

They are not pretending anymore. They are not being stealthy anymore. They are coming for our bank accounts in every way, and they are slashing the safety net.

It is brazen now.

Folks who never needed help before are in real trouble. And nobody in Congress seems to be aware what a crisis this is... :(

The rest of people on food stamps simply aren't in a position to be helped by job training (i.e. they're already qualified professionals, or skilled workers, or partially disabled, or already working, or a number of other things).

Free food instead is a bad idea, except maybe in slums where even mediocre food is available. Most of the people I've encountered who receive food stamps eat much healthier and cheaper than any food I'm likely to get from the government. Unfortunately many, maybe most people on food stamps in the country don't do this, and training them in eating cheap wouldn't fly because most of the food decisions I make are anti-corporate, that's why they are healthy and cheap.

If they cut food stamps, the costs will appear elsewhere, as there simply aren't the jobs, legal or illegal, to allow people to earn the extra money.

scumbags

... and make it harder to get while we're at it.

No wonder they embrace supply-side economics.