3.0.0 2192 2023-03-08T20:12:14Z 2023-03-08T20:12:14Z Senate S 2021-06-23 117 ssaf00 Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee Senate Standing Referred to 2021-06-23T21:30:12Z Closing the Meal Gap Act of 2021 117 4077 HR 2021-07-28 Referred to the Subcommittee on Nutrition, Oversight, and Department Operations. Related bill CRS 2021-06-23 ssaf00 Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee Senate Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. IntroReferral 2021-06-23 Introduced in Senate IntroReferral 10000 9 Library of Congress G000555 Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY] Kirsten Gillibrand D NY E. N S000033 Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] Bernard Sanders I VT 2021-06-23 True B001288 Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] Cory Booker D NJ 2021-06-23 True P000145 Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA] Alex Padilla D CA 2021-06-23 True W000817 Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA] Elizabeth Warren D MA A. 2021-06-23 True M000133 Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA] Edward Markey D MA J. 2022-06-21 False L000570 Sen. Lujan, Ben Ray [D-NM] Ben Lujan D NM R. 2022-09-14 False Agriculture and Food Aging American Samoa Caribbean area Congressional oversight Disability and paralysis Employment and training programs Food assistance and relief Health care costs and insurance Northern Mariana Islands Poverty and welfare assistance Puerto Rico U.S. territories and protectorates Agriculture and Food 00 2021-06-23 Introduced in Senate 2022-02-04T19:20:49Z Closing the Meal Gap Act of 2021

This bill revises the requirements for calculating Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.

The bill increases the minimum SNAP benefit and requires benefits to be calculated using the value of a low-cost food plan. The Department of Agriculture (USDA) must determine the requirements for the low-cost food plan, which is the diet required to feed a family of four, consisting of

  • a man and a woman 19-50 years of age,
  • a child 6-8 years of age, and
  • a child 9-11 years of age.

USDA must (1) reevaluate and publish the market baskets of the plan by December 31, 2027, and every five years thereafter, based on current food prices, food composition data, consumption patterns, and dietary guidance; and (2) make adjustments to the plan to account for household size, changes in the cost of the diet, and the costs of food in specified areas.

The bill modifies the requirements for calculating household income to determine SNAP eligibility by (1) authorizing a standard medical expense deduction for households containing an elderly or disabled member, and (2) eliminating the cap on the excess shelter expense deduction.

The bill eliminates certain work requirements for SNAP. The requirements apply to able-bodied adults who are ages 18-49 and have no dependent children.

The bill allows Puerto Rico, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands to participate in SNAP. Currently, the three territories receive block grants instead of participating in SNAP.

]]> Closing the Meal Gap Act of 2021 Official Title as Introduced A bill to amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to require that supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits be calculated using the value of the low-cost food plan, and for other purposes. Introduced in Senate IS Display Title Closing the Meal Gap Act of 2021 Short Title(s) as Introduced Closing the Meal Gap Act of 2021 Introduced in Senate IS Introduced in Senate 2021-06-23T04:00:00Z https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-117s2192is/xml/BILLS-117s2192is.xml 2021-06-23 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain. Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress This file contains bill summaries and statuses for federal legislation. A bill summary describes the most significant provisions of a piece of legislation and details the effects the legislative text may have on current law and federal programs. Bill summaries are authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress. As stated in Public Law 91-510 (2 USC 166 (d)(6)), one of the duties of CRS is "to prepare summaries and digests of bills and resolutions of a public general nature introduced in the Senate or House of Representatives". For more information, refer to the User Guide that accompanies this file.