Senate Democrats: Withdraw SNAP Proposal Eliminating Categorical Eligibility

A letter from 15 senators urges Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to withdraw a proposal they say would take food assistance away from millions of families.  The proposal would eliminate categorical eligibility under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The 15 Democrats, including Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, say the rule would impact the "most vulnerable populations" in the U.S., including 13% of seniors currently receiving SNAP benefits.

According to an analysis by Mathematica, at least 3.6 million SNAP participants will lose benefits as a result of the proposed rule. In the 2018 farm bill, the letter says Congress deliberately chose to exclude any changes to categorical eligibility due to the “devastating impact on families.”  Additionally, the Senators raised concerns that the administration failed to conduct an accurate regulatory impact assessment.

In a briefing to Congressional staff, USDA acknowledged that, at a minimum, 500,000 children would lose access to school meals. However, these impacts, among others, are not included in the required analysis.

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