Program for Hungry Missourians could Face Cuts

(Farmington) Public comment has ended on the Trump administration’s third proposal this year for changing SNAP, the program formerly known as food stamps.

The latest move would cut 4-point-5 billion dollars from the program over five years by changing how states calculate benefits based on utility bills.

More than seven million low-income Americans are projected to see an average benefit loss of just over 30 dollars a month.

Conner Kerrigan with Empower Missouri says SNAP is a crucial program that more than 680-thousand Missourians depend on to put food on the table.

One-in-eight people in Missouri is food insecure, including roughly 316-thousand children.

Kerrigan says hunger impacts every part of a child’s life as they grow.

He adds this is the third time this year SNAP has been targeted for cuts.

Under current policy, SNAP allocations take into account differences in utility rates and costs among states.

The proposed rule change would standardize the calculations across the country.

The USDA says the plan is aimed at modernizing SNAP and reducing benefit discrepancies between states.