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Take Action while Congress is in Recess

With lawmakers home for the two-week Congressional recess period (March 19th through April 4th), federal legislation threatening the national nutrition safety net will be taken up when they return and is at a critical juncture. Your continued efforts over this recess are vitally important, since Members of Congress will be involved in critical actions finalizing the budget resolution and TANF reauthorization bill as soon as they return. Priority messages and action for the recess period.

This alert recaps developments on the FY 2006 Budget Resolution in the House and Senate and on the nutrition aspects of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program reauthorization. It also suggests priority messages and action for the recess period.

Budget and TANF Threats to Nutrition Programs

Budget.

The House and Senate each just passed FY 2006 Budget Resolutions that assume different levels of tax cuts and cuts in domestic programs--and that increase the deficit overall. In April, a House/Senate conference committee will meet to iron out differences in the respective versions of the Budget Resolution. That conference agreement will then be put to subsequent votes in each chamber.

For programs under the jurisdiction of the Agriculture Committee, the House Budget proposes a five-year cut of $5.278 billion; the Senate Budget proposes a five-year cut of $2.814 billion. An effort in the Senate to delete the requirement that the Agriculture Committee cut spending in its jurisdiction failed on a mainly party line vote of 46 to 54, with Republican Senator Specter (PA) joining in support of the amendment offered by Senator Baucus (D-MT).

What, if any, dollar level for cuts will be required of the Agriculture Committee will depend on the outcome in conference. Keeping the reconciliation dollar savings instructions to the Agriculture Committees to a minimum is a major priority for all of us in the upcoming conference. If the House and Senate agree on a budget resolution with a level of cuts assigned to the Agriculture Committees the task will then fall to the Agriculture Committees to design specific policies to achieve cuts in a fast-track “reconciliation” bill.

It has become clearer and clearer that the Food Stamp Program is at significant risk if the Agriculture Committees are required to cut programs in their jurisdiction as part of an overall budget reconciliation process. Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) has already stated publicly that cuts to the Food Stamp Program will be part of the budget reconciliation mix, but he plans cuts in other areas, such as agriculture subsidy programs and conservation, as well. House Republicans reportedly will seek even steeper cuts in the Food Stamp Program and have suggested that most cuts would come from food stamps. Background and details on the Budget resolution.

Saying “NO” to reopening the 2002 Farm Bill is one strategy to safeguard the nutrition programs. Both Chairman Chambliss and House Agriculture Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) have also recently stated their intentions to keep the 2002 Farm Bill intact. The Nutrition Title of the 2002 Farm Bill made critically important improvements in the Food Stamp Program, The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP, and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP).

TANF. Also in April, the full Senate is expected to take up the TANF bill that was approved by the Senate Finance Committee. In the House, the TANF bill (H.R. 240) would allow optional food stamp block grants (in five states) and new waiver authority that could undermine the effectiveness of the Food Stamp Program. Either a block grant or “superwaiver” would begin to undo the fundamental entitlement structure of the Food Stamp Program. The Senate Committee bill has no such provisions affecting food stamps. We need Senators to continue to oppose any such food stamp provisions when TANF legislation comes to the floor, and then in conference. Information on nutrition issues in the TANF Bill.

*Messages: Urge Members of Congress to: 1) Say NO to reopening the Farm Bill and oppose budget cuts to the Food Stamp and other nutrition programs; 2) Protect the Food Stamp and other nutrition programs by urging Budget Conferees and Congressional leaders to set the Agriculture Committee instruction at the smallest possible number, but no more than the Senate $2.814 billion/five years; 3) Oppose any TANF bill provisions that would undermine the Food Stamp Program’s national guarantee (i.e. any optional block grant or new waiver authority).

Congressional Lawmakers' Contact Information.

*Activities:

1) Invite Members of Congress to program site visits;
2) Attend town hall meetings your Members are holding (call the office to check on schedule);
3) Ask for an appointment with your Members during the recess if they are in the state, or for telephone calls with Members’ DC staff that handle agriculture and nutrition;
4) Ask your networks to call and write Members over the recess.

Congressional Lawmakers' Contact Information.

For additional information or feedback, please contact FRAC (202-986-2200; evollinger@frac.org, eteller@frac.org, lparker@frac.org; CBPP (202-408-1080, rosenbaum@cbpp.org, pawling@cbpp.org); and America’s Second Harvest—The Nation’s Food Bank Network (312-263-2303, dobrien@secondharvest.org, ethompson@secondharvest.org, jparadis@secondharvest.org).

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Related Links:
» Background
» Information on nutrition issues in the TANF Bill
» Previous alerts