Thompson Wants SNAP Trimmed

House Ag Chair G.T. Thompson renewed his calls this week for Farm Bill SNAP reforms that scuttled last year’s Farm Bill effort.  That came during a debate on a narrowly-passed House budget that the Senate must still consider.

Thompson complained the Biden Administration ballooned pandemic SNAP spending by $256 billion, or 66%.  The Ag chair claimed the USDA, under then-Secretary Tom Vilsack, violated the Congressional Review Act, a charge Vilsack denied last year.  But Thompson previewed what could be another big Farm Bill fight, as the House narrowly passed its budget that calls for $230 billion in Ag committee savings over ten years.

"Thoughtful policies that recognize the value of work, hold states accountable for program integrity, and in the long run protect the safety net for those Americans who truly need it, should be our priority.”

Top House Ag Democrat Angie Craig issued a statement that the House-passed budget would cut SNAP, hurt everyone along the food supply chain, and threaten the Farm Bill coalition.  Thompson argued, as he did last year, that the savings are needed to help struggling farmers.

“We must use this process to advance the needs of the farm economy. We cannot leave our most ardent supporters in rural America without new resources and empty-handed for a third year.”

Farmers continue to operate under the twice-extended 2018 Farm Bill with outdated reference price support triggers.

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