1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35

______________________________ Councilmember Mary M. Cheh

A PROPOSED RESOLUTION
____________

IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA _________________

Councilmember Mary M. Cheh introduced the following resolution, which was referred to the Committee on _______________.

To declare the sense of the Council on its support of SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program) and its critical impact on the low-income residents of the District of Columbia. RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this resolution may be cited as the Sense of the Council on Support for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Resolution of 2012. Sec. 2. The Council finds that: (1) The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives are currently considering making drastic cuts to, and changes to the structure of the benefit entitlements provided by, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), our nation's first line of defense against hunger, as part of the 2012 Farm Bill re-authorization. (2) The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) estimates that 12.6 percent of all District households struggle to put food on the table; and SNAP is currently the nutritional lifeline for nearly 140,000 District residents, including 45,000 children and 10,000 seniors over 60. (3) SNAP is targeted to the most vulnerable households in our communities, with 1

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22

92% of beneficiary households in D.C. having incomes below the federal poverty line. (4) SNAP not only benefits low-income families, it also spurs local economic activity and supports businesses that serve our low and moderate-income communities: in fact, Moody's Analytics estimates that every $1 spent in SNAP benefits generates $1.71 in economic activity. (5) S.3240, recently passed by the Senate Agriculture Committee, makes an estimated $4.5 billion dollars in cuts to SNAP over 10 years which would adversely affect current SNAP recipients and potential future applicants. (6) The U.S. House Agriculture Committee has in its version of the Farm Bill (H.R. 6083) proposed even larger cuts of $16 billion to SNAP over 10 years. (7) Both the House and Senate Versions of the Farm Bill limit a states ability to employ the "Heat and Eat" option, which gives states the flexibility to provide SNAP households with a nominal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) benefit and by doing this, states are able to simplify the benefit calculation process and increase benefit allotments for a significant number of households. (8) States and the District of Columbia that have implemented the "Heat and Eat" option indicate that this simplification significantly reduces the administrative cost of SNAP and thus reduces lengthy waits and allows more residents to access the benefits they're entitled to. (9) The House Agriculture Committee proposal also makes changes to Categorical Eligibility for the program, which would reduce the access to SNAP that this Council enacted through passage of the D.C. Food Stamp Expansion Act of 2009 and potentially reduce access to school meals for D.C schoolchildren.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

(10) The U.S. House Agricultural Committee proposal would end the state bonuses for effective SNAP administration, which have provided the Districts Department of Human Services Economic Security Administration over $1 million in bonus awards based on excellent administration and performance in just the last 3 years. (11) City leaders and D.C. Hunger Solutions in partnership with Bread for the City, D.C. Fair Budget Coalition, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington, Capital Area Asset Builders, Defeat Poverty DC, DC Greens, and Washington Area Womens Foundation are taking a SNAP/Food Stamp Challenge the week of October 9th through 15th, 2012 to raise awareness about the importance of SNAP and the need to strengthen the program. Sec. 3. It is the sense of the Council to urge the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate to strengthen, not weaken, our nation's nutrition safety net during the 2012 Farm Bill reauthorization process by maintaining the funding and preserving the structure of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as an entitlement program with robust funding to assist those living in hunger during these difficult economic times. Sec. 4. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon the first date of publication in the District of Columbia Register.