Media Contact:
Jordan Baker
jbaker@frac.org
202-640-1118
Statement attributable to Crystal FitzSimons, President, Food Research & Action Center (FRAC)
WASHINGTON, June 11, 2025— FRAC is deeply disappointed that the Senate Agriculture Committee’s budget reconciliation bill would weaken the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), our nation’s first line of defense against hunger. If lawmakers truly want families to thrive, small businesses to stay open, and rural communities to flourish, they would not be proposing cuts that would take food off the table for millions, eliminate jobs, and deepen economic hardship – they would protect SNAP.
Both the House and Senate Agriculture Committee bill text mark a devastating reversal in the fight against hunger in America. Permanently changing SNAP’s structure and cutting billions from the program over the next decade would cause significant and undue harm for families, children, older adults, veterans, and people with disabilities while also dealing a blow to farmers, grocers, state and local governments, and the economy.
Budget cuts could force millions of older adults to choose between meals and medication, compel millions of parents to make the impossible decision between paying for housing or buying groceries, and impact children’s access to the free school meals that fuel their health and learning.
The Senate Agriculture Committee bill text echoes the House version in many ways. The bill fundamentally overhauls SNAP by shifting federal benefit responsibilities and an unsustainable 75 percent share of administrative costs – up from the current 50 percent – to already underfunded and understaffed state agencies, leaving strained state budgets unable to absorb the added burden without raising taxes, cutting programs, or reducing access.
The bill would erode the value of SNAP benefits by capping updates to Thrifty Food Plan. It also would impose time limits on food benefits for unemployed and underemployed people who cannot document sufficient weekly work or volunteer hours, ignoring realities like inconsistent work hours and volunteer opportunities, poor health conditions, and changes in the job market.
To ensure every American has consistent access to essential nutrition, Congress must not cut SNAP. This essential program also must continue to be fully funded at the federal level. Hunger affects communities across the nation and is not a partisan issue – it is a solvable issue.
This bill cannot stand. We urge Senators to vote “no” and oppose cuts to SNAP and instead work towards building a nation free from hunger. The well-being of our families, neighborhoods, and local economies relies on it.
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The Food Research & Action Center improves the nutrition, health, and well-being of people struggling against poverty-related hunger in the United States through advocacy, partnerships, and by advancing bold and equitable policy solutions. To learn more, visit FRAC.org and follow us on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky.
