IV 112th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 760 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES August 2, 2012 Mr. McGovern (for himself, Mr. George Miller of California, Ms. DeLauro, and Ms. Fudge) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Congress should reject the provisions of H.R. 6083, as ordered reported by the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives, that reduce the availability or amount of benefits provided under the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) in effect under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008.

Whereas hunger is a serious threat to individual dignity, productivity, learning, economic prosperity, health and development; Whereas food insecurity means that people face an ongoing struggle against hunger; Whereas 48.8 million people lived in food insecure households in 2010; Whereas the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP), established in the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, is the nation’s first line of defense against hunger and food insecurity; Whereas SNAP served more than 46 million people in May 2012; Whereas half of all new SNAP participants receive benefits for 10 months or less and 74 percent left the program entirely within 2 years; Whereas the average SNAP household has income of 57 percent of the poverty level, and 84 percent of all benefits go to households with a child, elderly person, or disabled person; Whereas the SNAP benefits average less than $1.50 per person per meal; Whereas 85 percent of families on SNAP make less than $24,000 a year for a family of 4; Whereas the average allotment per household is $284 per month; Whereas SNAP participation rises when the economy is weak; Whereas millions of Americans need to turn to SNAP as a way to feed themselves and their families; Whereas SNAP would have lifted 3.9 million Americans, including 1.7 million children, out of poverty in 2010 if its benefits were included in the official measures of income and poverty; Whereas SNAP is an efficient public/private partnership that runs on the regular channels of commerce—regular retail outlets and Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) systems; Whereas SNAP achieved the highest level of overall payment accuracy in the history of the program at 96.2 percent; Whereas the national overpayment error rate, defined as the percentage of SNAP benefit dollars issued in excess of the amounts for which households are eligible, fell to 3.05 percent; Whereas the national underpayment error rate, defined as the percentage of SNAP benefit dollars issued that are lower than the amounts for which households are eligible, was less than 1.0 percent; Whereas every dollar in new SNAP benefits generates up to $1.79 in economic activity; Whereas each $1 billion increase in SNAP benefits is estimated to create or maintain 18,000 full-time equivalent jobs, including 3,000 farm jobs; Whereas H.R. 6083, the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act (FARRM), would reauthorize SNAP; Whereas the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that H.R. 6083 would cut SNAP by $16.5 billion over 10 years; Whereas H.R. 6083 cuts SNAP provisions for the Categorical Eligibility (Cat El) option, the Standard Utility Allowance (SUA)/Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) connection (heat and eat), and the State Performance Fund (performance bonuses); Whereas Cat El, heat and eat, and performance bonuses help States provide SNAP benefits to needy people through streamlined procedures that cut down on red tape and minimize State administrative expenses; Whereas H.R. 6083 Cat El cuts will result in 1.8 million to 3 million people being cut from SNAP entirely; Whereas H.R. 6083 heat and eat cuts will cause 500,000 households to see their SNAP food benefits cut by an average of $90 each month; Whereas H.R. 6083 eliminates SNAP performance bonuses that have helped States in their efforts to reduce payment errors and promote excellent customer service; Whereas H.R. 6083 SNAP Cat El cuts will cause 280,000 low-income children to lose access to free school lunches; Whereas cuts in H.R. 6083 will deprive low-income Americans of nearly 1 billion meals in 2014 alone and will increase food insecurity over the life of the bill; and Whereas congregations, food banks, and other charities are struggling to meet existing elevated need and will be unable to meet the significant increase in need that would be caused by the cuts in H.R. 6083: Now, therefore, be it

That it is sense of the House of Representatives that the Congress should reject the provisions of H.R. 6083, as ordered reported by the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives, that reduce the availability or amount of benefits provided under the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) in effect under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008.