Mr. Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to rise and address my colleagues. On November 1, households participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, popularly referred to as…
Mr. Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to rise and address my colleagues.
On November 1, households participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, popularly referred to as SNAP, will see their monthly benefits sharply reduced. The temporary benefit boost provided for in the 2009 American Reinvestment and Recovery Act is scheduled to expire next month, leaving many Americans unsure of how they will put food on the table. The November 1 cut will exacerbate the problem of hunger in our Nation and make it much harder for millions of Americans--fathers, mothers, children, veterans, and Active Duty military even--to provide for their loved ones.
The benefit increase passed in the depths of the Great Recession has provided Americans, both directly and indirectly, with substantial benefits. Low-income families who face unemployment and underemployment are provided a critical way to bridge the financial barriers they face. Americans who are employed in adequate-paying jobs are able to remain so because of the boost to the economy; $9 is added to the GDP for every $5 in SNAP benefits that the program provides. These cuts will come at a moment when Americans are ill prepared to afford them. The loss of SNAP will not just mean empty tables for Thanksgiving for millions. It will mean, as well, a weaker economy, now even as the effects of our prolonged shutdown and debt ceiling brinksmanship are beginning to erode economic progress. This cut in benefits will simply push the American economy into a vicious cycle which we simply cannot afford at this time.
So I am urging my colleagues to avoid exacerbating the effects of this government shutdown and the potential default of government debts, and I am calling on them to support my bill, H.R. 3108, the Extend Not Cut SNAP Benefits Act, which provides for a 1-year extension of the 13 percent benefits increase contained in the ARRA through the 2014 fiscal year.
I am proud to proclaim 43 cosponsors so far.
In 2011, SNAP lifted 4.7 million Americans above the poverty line, including 2.1 million children. Without an extension of the 2009 Recovery Act's temporary boost to SNAP, our economy will be the worse, and our children will face a hunger they do not deserve to confront alone. So I urge my colleagues to continue the support of H.R. 3108 and ensure that Americans are not cut off at the worst possible time.
Rep. Bordallo, Madeleine Z. [GU]--9/18/2013
Rep. Brown, Corrine [FL-5]--9/18/2013
Rep. Capuano, Michael E. [MA-7]--9/27/2013
Rep. Cicilline, David N. [RI-1]--9/20/2013
Rep. Clarke, Yvette D. [NY-9]--9/18/2013
Rep. Clay, Wm. Lacy [MO-1]--9/18/2013
Rep. Cohen, Steve [TN-9]--9/20/2013
Rep. Connolly, Gerald E. [VA-11]--9/18/2013
Rep. Davis, Danny K. [IL-7]--10/3/2013
Rep. Doyle, Michael F. [PA-14]--9/20/2013
Rep. Ellison, Keith [MN-5]--9/18/2013
Rep. Fudge, Marcia L. [OH-11]--9/18/2013
Rep. Green, Al [TX-9]--10/8/2013
Rep. Green, Gene [TX-29]--9/18/2013
Rep. Grijalva, Raul M. [AZ-3]--9/18/2013
Rep. Honda, Michael M. [CA-17]--9/20/2013
Rep. Huffman, Jared [CA-2]--9/20/2013
Rep. Jackson Lee, Sheila [TX-18]--9/18/2013
Rep. Johnson, Eddie Bernice [TX-30]--9/18/2013
Rep. Langevin, James R. [RI-2]--9/20/2013
Rep. Lee, Barbara [CA-13]--9/17/2013
Rep. Lewis, John [GA-5]--9/18/2013
Rep. McGovern, James P. [MA-2]--9/18/2013
Rep. Moore, Gwen [WI-4]--9/18/2013
Rep. Nadler, Jerrold [NY-1]--9/18/2013
Rep. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [DC]--9/18/2013
Rep. Pingree, Chellie [ME-1]--9/18/2013
Rep. Pocan, Mark [WI-2]--10/8/2013
Rep. Rangel, Charles B. [NY-13]--9/18/2013
Rep. Rush, Bobby L. [IL-1]--9/18/2013
Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [IL-9]--9/27/2013
Rep. Serrano, Jose E. [NY-15]--9/18/2013
Rep. Shea-Porter, Carol [NH-1]--10/3/2013
Rep. Slaughter, Louise McIntosh [NY-25]--9/27/2013
Rep. Smith, Adam [WA-9]--9/20/2013
Rep. Takano, Mark [CA-41]--10/8/2013
Rep. Thompson, Bennie G. [MS-2]--10/8/2013
Rep. Titus, Dina [NV-1]--9/18/2013
Rep. Vargas, Juan [CA-51]--9/18/2013
Rep. Vela, Filemon [TX-34]--10/10/2013
Rep. Waters, Maxine [CA-43]--9/20/2013
Rep. Welch, Peter [VT]--10/4/2013
Rep. Wilson, Frederica S. [FL-24]--10/8/2013
