Merkley, Stabenow: Shutdown will cutoff food stamps; Cochran introduces short-term funding bill
September 22, 2015 |02:40 PM
Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee ranking member Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Senate Agriculture Committee ranking member Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., are scheduled to begin a press conference momentarily at which they will announce that the Agriculture Department will be unable to distribute food stamps to 45 million people on October 1 if the government shutdown goes into effect.
Information in a media advisory was embargoed until 2:30 p.m.
“Unlike during the 2013 shutdown, if the federal government shuts down on October 1, 2015, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — commonly known as food stamps — risks being immediately cut off for millions of hungry American families,” Merkley and Stabenow said in the advisory.
“During the 2013 shutdown, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the program, was able to use funds remaining from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to keep food stamps flowing to families throughout the shutdown. Those funds have now expired, however, and if the federal government shuts down again in less than 10 days, USDA will not have sufficient contingency funds to cover the cost of food stamps for October and may be forced to immediately institute a temporary shutdown of the program on October 1,” they added.
Stabenow and Merkeley also noted that, according to USDA, more than 60 percent of the 45 million SNAP participants are children (44 percent), elderly (9 percent), and disabled (10 percent).
“The program pumps billions of dollars each month into the American economy, and is the primary federal program to directly relieve hunger among the most vulnerable families in America,” they said.
Details on the Merkley-Stabenow news conference will follow.
Meanwhile, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Thad Cochran, R-Miss., today encouraged his colleagues to support a short-term continuing resolution to continue funding for government operations and prohibit funding for Planned Parenthood.
Continuing Appropriations Resolution 2016 would ensure the operation of the federal government through Dec. 11, 2015, creating a two-and-a-half month window to complete the fiscal year 2016 appropriations process.
The legislation provides funding at an annual rate of $1.017 trillion, which conforms to the topline discretionary spending limit established by the Budget Control Act for fiscal year 2016, the Senate Appropriations Committee said in a news release.
“Our committee has approved all 12 of the annual appropriations bills required to meet our national security and domestic priorities. Most of these bills have bipartisan support,” Cochran said.
“I encourage senators to support this continuing resolution so that we can meet our responsibility to the American people to keep government operations open and address the challenges facing our nation.”
For the duration of the continuing resolution, the legislation will provide appropriations for Overseas Contingency Operations at an annual rate of $74.7 billion. The legislation also includes $700 million in emergency wildland fire suppression funding.
The legislation places a prohibition on federal funding for Planned Parenthood or its affiliates unless a Planned Parenthood certifies it will not perform or fund abortions. The bill redirects the estimated $235 million in mandatory savings to increase funding for community health centers.
The measure includes a limited number of funding anomalies, such as supporting veterans’ disability claims processing at a rate necessary to address backlogs; paying rental assistance contracts for rural housing; and accommodating an increased demand for 7(a) small business loans.
Finally, the legislation extends certain expiring authorities for the duration of the continuing resolution, including the Internet Tax Freedom Act, the E-Verify program, and the Federal Aviation Administration.
Information in a media advisory was embargoed until 2:30 p.m.
“Unlike during the 2013 shutdown, if the federal government shuts down on October 1, 2015, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — commonly known as food stamps — risks being immediately cut off for millions of hungry American families,” Merkley and Stabenow said in the advisory.
“During the 2013 shutdown, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the program, was able to use funds remaining from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to keep food stamps flowing to families throughout the shutdown. Those funds have now expired, however, and if the federal government shuts down again in less than 10 days, USDA will not have sufficient contingency funds to cover the cost of food stamps for October and may be forced to immediately institute a temporary shutdown of the program on October 1,” they added.
Stabenow and Merkeley also noted that, according to USDA, more than 60 percent of the 45 million SNAP participants are children (44 percent), elderly (9 percent), and disabled (10 percent).
“The program pumps billions of dollars each month into the American economy, and is the primary federal program to directly relieve hunger among the most vulnerable families in America,” they said.
Details on the Merkley-Stabenow news conference will follow.
Meanwhile, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Thad Cochran, R-Miss., today encouraged his colleagues to support a short-term continuing resolution to continue funding for government operations and prohibit funding for Planned Parenthood.
Continuing Appropriations Resolution 2016 would ensure the operation of the federal government through Dec. 11, 2015, creating a two-and-a-half month window to complete the fiscal year 2016 appropriations process.
The legislation provides funding at an annual rate of $1.017 trillion, which conforms to the topline discretionary spending limit established by the Budget Control Act for fiscal year 2016, the Senate Appropriations Committee said in a news release.
“Our committee has approved all 12 of the annual appropriations bills required to meet our national security and domestic priorities. Most of these bills have bipartisan support,” Cochran said.
“I encourage senators to support this continuing resolution so that we can meet our responsibility to the American people to keep government operations open and address the challenges facing our nation.”
For the duration of the continuing resolution, the legislation will provide appropriations for Overseas Contingency Operations at an annual rate of $74.7 billion. The legislation also includes $700 million in emergency wildland fire suppression funding.
The legislation places a prohibition on federal funding for Planned Parenthood or its affiliates unless a Planned Parenthood certifies it will not perform or fund abortions. The bill redirects the estimated $235 million in mandatory savings to increase funding for community health centers.
The measure includes a limited number of funding anomalies, such as supporting veterans’ disability claims processing at a rate necessary to address backlogs; paying rental assistance contracts for rural housing; and accommodating an increased demand for 7(a) small business loans.
Finally, the legislation extends certain expiring authorities for the duration of the continuing resolution, including the Internet Tax Freedom Act, the E-Verify program, and the Federal Aviation Administration.
