Almost 350,000 households in New York and Connecticut and in the near future, Massachusetts and Vermont, can breathe a sigh of relief thanks to the actions of our respective governors’ move to secure federal funds for food assistance. The 2014 farm bill, which was signed into law, cuts food assistance for anyone receiving less than $20 per month in heating subsidies. To circumvent these proposed cuts, states are raising affected households heating subsidies to the bare minimum requirements.
The $5 billion in across the board food stamp cuts, which has created record breaking levels of hunger, has been a nightmare for states trying to find new solutions to this problem. Even though states managed to avert catastrophe this year, a solution for next year is still unknown.
Cuts to the Farm Bill remain a heated debate for Congress. Representatives from Massachusetts, New York, and fifteen other member of Congress co-signed a letter urging the USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack to put off the Food Stamp cuts until they can formulate a solution in their home states.
Source: MSNBC
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