Democrats rail against federal cuts to food assistance program in big ‘ugly’ bill
By: Anna Kaminski, https://kansasreflector.com/
TOPEKA — Democratic leaders rallied Wednesday against the congressional budget and tax cut bill, fearing changes to the national food assistance program will blow holes in state budgets and leave Americans hungry.
Four Democratic governors and two U.S. senators slammed the proposed cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program within the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which they referred to as “ugly” and a “big beautiful betrayal of a bill” during a press call.
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota led the call. She and U.S. Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware, as well as Govs. Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Maura Healey of Massachusetts, Laura Kelly of Kansas and Matt Meyer of Delaware took turns lambasting the Republican legislation.
“I’m very concerned about not only the money that this is going to cost but also the chaos that it’s going to create for so many people who will just give up and end up going hungry,” Kelly said.
The Democrats told stories of seniors, children, veterans and families who they worry will suffer as a result of cuts.
“They’re going to have that pain in their stomachs and throughout their body when they’re trying to go to bed or when they’re waking up in the morning of not having enough to eat,” Beshear said.
The bill changes by the day. Recent modifications from the U.S. Senate would require states to contribute a combined $128 billion to the federal food assistance program, which historically has been fully funded by the federal government. States would be required to contribute more money, the higher their payment error rates. States currently contribute half of administrative costs, but another provision in the bill seeks to reduce the federal government’s share by $27 billion, or 25%, creating additional costs for states.
The changes to SNAP from the Senate are multifold, but many are driven by cost-cutting measures and restricting eligibility.
The current proposal would bolster work requirements for SNAP beneficiaries and restrict eligibility for people in the U.S. without permanent legal status. Both provisions are designed to save the government almost $100 billion by making benefits more difficult to access for low-income families. The proposal also could eliminate internet expenses from utility benefit calculations, reducing the amount of money beneficiaries receive each month. That change is expected to save the government $11 billion.
The Democrats criticized Republicans for touting the bill as cutting costs while it is projected to add $3 trillion to the country’s deficit in the next decade.
Two of the bill’s food-benefits provisions — the state contribution requirement and restricted eligibility for immigrants who aren’t lawful permanent residents of the U.S. — broke a Senate rule, according to the budget committee. Those provisions either need to be fixed or, if left in, will be subject to a 60-vote threshold.
“That has not deterred the Republican leadership from continuing to search for workarounds, and apparently have found one,” said Kelly.
Republicans recently adjusted the language of the state contribution provision, and the Senate parliamentarian took it under review
Klobuchar, who sits on the Senate rules and agriculture committees, anticipated word on whether the new language violates a Senate rule by Thursday. Regardless, she said, Democrats intend to oppose the bill.
Most of the bill’s funding is a result of shifting costs in the billions to states, she said.
The majority of states have balanced budget rules, Klobuchar said, “so they would be forced to choose: pay for food assistance or reduce law enforcement, reduce education or reduce health care.”
Klobuchar quoted a letter Democratic governors sent Tuesday to congressional leadership, explaining their qualms with states taking on SNAP costs.
“These cuts from Congress don’t just increase state costs,” the letter said, “they make it nearly impossible for states to effectively plan for these long-term budget impacts.”
Most states have already finalized budgets ahead of the June 30 end date of the 2025 fiscal year.
Klobuchar said 4 million Americans will lose SNAP benefits as a result of the bill, which includes 1 million seniors, 800,000 parents with school-age children and 1.4 million people who live in areas where finding a job is difficult.
SNAP beneficiaries receive about $6.20 per person per day. The program is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to more than 42 million people across the country. Around 115,000 Delawareans, 186,000 Kansans, 700,000 Kentuckians, 1.1 million Massachusetts residents and 360,000 Minnesotans receive monthly SNAP benefits as of March, according to preliminary estimates from the USDA.
Healey, of Massachusetts, said that for every one meal that a food bank provides, SNAP provides nine.
States don’t have the resources to fill gaps left behind by the proposed cuts, she said.
Kelly estimated Kansas, in administrative costs alone, will have to find more than $15 million per year to operate SNAP, which she called a conservative estimate. She expected Kansans in need will lose their benefits, especially if bolstered work requirements pass. She said they sound “really good” in theory, but worried the requirements and reporting will create hurdles for people who are “legitimately qualified” for benefits.
“We’re going to see the same thing happen with SNAP that we saw with Medicaid in states that were forced to, or did, put in work requirements,” she said.
Beshear drew a connection between the bill’s SNAP provisions and similar cuts that would weaken funding to rural hospitals. Kentucky has the highest number in the nation of rural hospitals at risk, with 35 facing closure. Beshear said those hospitals are often major employers. If rural hospitals close as a result of the bill, he said, Kentuckians are more likely to fall on hard times and turn to assistance programs like SNAP for help. But the proposed cuts to SNAP will make that more difficult, he said. Beshear criticized the cuts through the lens of religion, reciting the biblical story of the loaves and fishes.
“In a country where we grow enough food so that no one has to go hungry,” he said, “no one should go hungry.”
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