U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer on July 2 called for a two-year delay in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program cost shifts for New York.
Schumer’s office estimates $5.6 million in new annual costs would fall on county budgets in the Rochester-Finger Lakes region, forcing counties to choose between raising local taxes or cutting food assistance for New Yorkers in need.
“135,000 New York families, kids and seniors across the Rochester-Finger Lakes region depend on SNAP to put food on the table,” Schumer said in a statement. “But last year, Republicans passed the largest cut to SNAP in history, forcing Rochester-Finger Lakes counties and their taxpayers to pick up the tab.”
The recently enacted federal law shifts part of SNAP administrative and benefit-related costs to states and, in New York’s case, counties that administer the program.
In addition to the delay, Schumer is also urging Republicans to work with Democrats in writing a Farm Bill that addresses SNAP cuts.
The Farm Bill governs federal agricultural, food and conservation programs. TThe legislation is typically reauthorized every five years and governs federal agriculture, nutrition and conservation programs.
“Democrats cannot support a Farm Bill until Republicans agree to include the two-year delay to the SNAP cost shift,” Schumer said in a statement.
Julia Tedesco, president and CEO of Foodlink, said she fully supports a delay in this cost-sharing policy and a Farm Bill that helps put food on the table for those that need it most.
“For decades, SNAP has served as our nation’s first line of defense against food insecurity and we have already seen the local impact of how federal legislation has removed thousands of people from this critical program,” Tedesco said in a statement. “Shifting costs to states and counties will further reduce enrollment and put an overwhelming and untenable strain on the emergency food system.”
— Kerria Weaver works as the Government and You reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle, with a focus on how government actions affect communities and neighborhoods in Rochester and in Monroe County. Get in touch at kweaver@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Why Schumer says local counties could face millions in new SNAP costs
Reporting by Kerria Weaver, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Kerria Weaver, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle | USA TODAY Network
