Federal Advocacy Update – April 16
Food Lifeline is working closely with Feeding America and many other partners to monitor changes in support to federal nutrition assistance our state receives. Already, the new administration at USDA has announced cuts that will reduce the amount hunger relief commodities expected for Washington state by approximately $50 million. Moreover, the newly controlled congress is advancing budget bills calling for $230 billion in cuts to SNAP. It is also growing increasingly unlikely that a bipartisan farm bill will be passed anytime soon (the 2018 farm bill was due for reauthorization in 2023). In light of this, we will continue to work closely with Washington’s Congressional delegation to advocate for protecting SNAP, and other critical federal nutrition programs, such as The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), and child nutrition programs, in federal budget resolutions and appropriations legislation to ensure the programs continue to support the millions of individuals and families facing hunger in the U.S.