The United States Senate will reconvene this morning at 10:30am to debate and vote on amendments to the Farm Bill. There are a total of 73 amendments the Senate is debating. Voting resumes at 11:00am. It is expected the Senate will conclude voting on amendments today and conduct the final vote.
All votes on nutrition programs have been concluded. Unfortunately Senator Gillibrand’s amendment to restore cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) failed. The cuts to SNAP will affect nearly 500 thousand households. These households will lose an estimated $90 per month that they used to put food on the table. This will undoubtedly boost the hardship that many families face in our area.
Despite cuts, the Capital Area Food Bank supports the Farm Bill moving forward during this session. It is still possible for the Senate to create a strong Farm Bill that supports the nutrition programs relied on by the people the food bank regularly serves. If the Senate decides to wait until next year to finalize the Farm Bill, there may be potentially larger cuts to food assistance.
How You Can Help
Your calls are critical to the success of strengthening the nutrition title in the Farm Bill and potentially reviving Senator Gillibrand’s amendment. The Capital Area Food Bank network has done a great job educating our legislators on the needs of their constituents. We must not let up. Phone calls to both of your U.S. Senators will make a difference this morning. Ask to speak to the person on staff who works on the Farm Bill, and simply state:
Thank you in advance for all your help!