CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Congress may not be able to finish the farm bill by the end of the month, when the old one expires. One deadlock is a controversial plan to cut access to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Josh Protas, vice president for public policy with Jewish hunger-relief group MAZON, said conservative House Republicans are insisting on adding work requirements to eligibility for SNAP - formerly known as food stamps. He said that's not popular even with some Senate Republicans. But House Agriculture Committee Chair Mike Conaway of Texas is holding out.

"Farm income is down right now. Agricultural producers are being impacted by the trade wars and tariffs,” Protas said. “So their interests are really being put at risk by those who are trying to make harmful cuts to SNAP."

Conaway and others argue the tough work rules are necessary to push people into employment. Food banks say state experiments have shown almost everyone on SNAP that can work has a job or is looking. They say the work rules don't increase employment, just demand at pantries.

Food banks estimate the House proposal would mean SNAP would provide 9 billion fewer meals over 10 years. Kate Leone, senior vice president for government relations with Feeding America, said the House proposal includes more job training and government commodities for pantries. But she said it's not enough.

"For every one meal that our network of food banks provides, SNAP provides 12,” Leone said. “That gap that would be created is something that we just simply can't make up."

The House farm bill barely passed on a near party-line vote. A Senate version of the bill - without the SNAP work rules - passed 86-11. A conference committee is meeting now, and Protas said it may not be able to hash out the differences in time.

"But time is quickly running out,” Protas said. “Whatever farm bill comes out of the conference committee will need to go to the Congressional Budget Office to be analyzed in terms of its budget impacts. So they're quickly running out of time."

President Donald Trump has tweeted that he prefers the work rules.


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Rural development leaders say getting healthy, locally grown food to underserved areas is a challenge in states like North Dakota.

They hope a new federal initiative that creates regional food business centers will help smaller communities and producers.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced the launch of a dozen hubs that will provide technical assistance and capacity building to help farmers, ranchers and other food businesses access new markets.

Lori Capouch is the rural development director for the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives.

She said food access woes had been growing in smaller communities before supply-chain problems became very evident over the past few years.

"Having trouble getting food to grocery stores and schools and restaurants in the very smaller cities," said Capouch. "But the pandemic accelerated that and suddenly we had schools that couldn't get ground beef although we have a ton of producers in our state."

There are other regional partners assisting with the food center, including the North Dakota Farmers Union.

It says a primary focus will involve developing critical infrastructure for small and mid-sized livestock and fruit and vegetable processing, along with storage options.

South Dakota and Minnesota will be part of the regional hub serving north-central states.

Capouch said involving smaller farmers and ranchers within the region should be a "big win" economically speaking.

"Those dollars then stay in our state," said Capouch. "and they benefit the people that live here."

Capouch said the regional food business center will largely operate in virtual fashion, and that over the next several months, they will bring organizations together to hear from producers and stakeholders about what their goals and needs are.




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Whether it's the recent debt ceiling negotiations or the Farm Bill debate, a key federal food assistance program is again at the mercy of budget haggling. Minnesota hunger-fighting groups say some of the rhetoric is short-sighted.

House Republicans have pushed for expanding work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - formerly known as food stamps - arguing it would incentivize more recipients to work.

But Colleen Moriarty, executive director of the group Hunger Solutions, said she feels that would actually do the opposite. She said food insecurity would instantly become a huge barrier in job search efforts.

"It's like if you want someone to work and you cut off their access to public transportation to get to a job, then they can't get there," said Moriarty. "If they don't have any food, they're hungry, they can't concentrate on what it is they're doing."

A tentative debt-ceiling deal was reached over the weekend, and it does include some expanded work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents, but there are also now exemptions for Veterans and those experiencing homelessness.

In combating longstanding misconceptions, Moriarty said it's important to remember these benefits are not a "cure-all" for low-income individuals, but a temporary source to help close hunger gaps when people are in their greatest moment of need.

Research has shown most SNAP recipients are part of the labor force, but often deal with interruptions, such as health issues, in maintaining stable employment.

Moriarty said limiting any aspect of SNAP benefits comes at the worst time for those struggling to get by.

Her group recently noted food shelves in Minnesota saw nearly two million more visits last year. And most pandemic aid has ended, which especially impacts older residents.

"Just recently, when we lifted the emergency status and SNAP went back to the previous levels, what we've seen is just a dramatic effect on seniors," said Moriarty. "Their benefits have rolled back now to $23 a month. You know, they're scared."

This past session, the Minnesota Legislature approved $5 million in emergency food shelf aid. But Moriarty warned that if some locations still can't meet demand and SNAP benefits are limited, those in need might not have anywhere to turn to.

Meanwhile, Congress is expected to vote this week on the updated SNAP provisions.

Three weeks into state Senate Republicans' walkout from the Oregon Legislature, concern is growing the move could sink action on important issues such as addressing hunger in the state.

Susannah Morgan, CEO of Oregon Food Bank, said rates of hunger are still above pre-pandemic levels, and it is anticipated the food assistance system in the state will serve more than a million people this year.

"This is a crisis that so many of us need help feeding our families," Morgan pointed out. "In order to meet that crisis we need our government to work."

Republicans walked out on May 3 in part because of a bill which would expand abortion rights and further protect transgender health care. Senate Republicans have pledged to come back on the final day of the session, scheduled for June 25, to pass bipartisan bills. Morgan argued one day does not give the Legislature enough time to pass a number of important bills.

She said one important measure is Senate Bill 610, which would ensure people who are undocumented can receive food assistance. It is estimated more than 62,000 Oregonians are excluded from federal food aid.

"This would really, really, really help us address this deep hunger crisis," Morgan explained. "And that is stuck because nothing is moving in the Oregon Legislature right now."

Morgan added she is asking Republican senators to go back to Salem.

"This is not intended as a partisan statement," Morgan cautioned. "This is intended as a statement about what our communities need to ensure that their food needs are met right now."