House and Senate Agriculture Committee leaders reportedly are aiming to wrap up negotiations over the Farm Bill (H.R. 2419) by February 1st.  At stake, among other things, will be the scope, duration, and priorities for new investments in the Food Stamp Program and The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP).  Please contact your Members of Congress and undertake January recess activities now to urge the best Farm Bill nutrition title choices to address hunger as effectively and as quickly as possible.

Below are details about the House/Senate Conference Committee outlook, a link to a sample letter to Members of Congress, and recommendations for activities that can build momentum for the best possible nutrition title.

Procedural Outlook:  Leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees reportedly met in late December to establish a framework and timetable for ironing out differences between the House and Senate versions of the Farm Bill that passed in July and December, respectively.  Although conferees have not yet been formally appointed, informal negotiations are expected to proceed, with leaders aiming to complete conference negotiations by February 1st.  See "Federal farm bill passes in Senate," by Erik Posz, Redwood Gazette, 12/27/07.

House and Senate leaders also are expected to play significant roles in decisions about the financing and priorities in the Farm Bill package.  And members of Congress who are not on the Conference Committee also still can influence the direction of the package and should be asked to weigh in on behalf of nutrition title priorities with their leaders and Conference Committee Members. 

Once a package is finalized, the House and Senate must each vote to approve it and send it to President Bush for signature or veto.   

Some in Congress have suggested enacting a one-year extension of existing laws rather than completing House/Senate Conference Committee action on this bill.  It is vital that Members of Congress hear how important it is for families that face a constant struggle against hunger to have action on the Farm Bill completed as soon as possible in 2008 and with adequate funding of investments in the Food Stamp Program and TEFAP.  A long-term extension of current law, by contrast, means continued erosion of the purchasing power of food stamp benefits and of eligibility standards, and too many empty shelves in emergency feeding outlets.  A long-term extension of current law is not a good deal for hungry families.   

What's at Stake:  The Senate version of the Farm Bill that passed in December and the one that passed the House in July each contain important new investments in the Food Stamp Program and TEFAP.  These include, among other changes:  increasing and then indexing both the Food Stamp Program $10 minimum monthly benefit and the standard deductions for households of three or fewer; lifting the cap on the child care deduction; raising food stamp household asset limits and then indexing them; and boosting TEFAP commodities purchases.   For details of the House and Senate versions of the Farm Bill, go to agriculture.house.gov and agriculture.senate.gov, respectively (Senate version to be posted). 

The House-passed Farm Bill is preferable with regard to the duration of Food Stamp Program and The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) improvements—there are permanent law changes under the House bill, but only five-year changes that would theoretically sunset under the Senate version unless renewed (and paid for) at the end of the five years. The House provisions on the $10 minimum monthly benefit, standard deduction and TEFAP also are preferable to the Senate bill:  the minimum benefit boost would take effect earlier (FY 2008 rather than FY 2009); the standard deduction raise would be more significant ($145 rather than $140); and the TEFAP commodity purchases increase would be indexed for inflation. Improvements to food stamp asset rules, however, are more significant under the Senate bill (with asset limits increased from $2,000 to $3,500, and $3,000 to $4,500, before indexing). Advocacy to secure the best provisions on each key point from each bill and to finance these investments for ten years  is critically important for the potential gains to be realized for hungry families.

Message:  Urge Members of the House and Senate to expedite a House/Senate Conference on the Farm Bill (H.R. 2419) and move in early 2008 to pass a final Farm Bill with the strongest possible nutrition title.  Specifically, urge support for the most significant additional investments in Food Stamp Program benefits (including the minimum monthly benefit and standard deduction), in Food Stamp Program access/asset limits, and in TEFAP.  Explain that a long-term extension of current law is not sufficient; hungry people can't wait. 

Ask Members of Congress to Convey that Message to Key Leaders Making Decisions:  Ask Members of Congress to convey these requests to House and Senate Leaders and to Chairmen and Ranking Members of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees:  House Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA), Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (MD), Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (MN); Senate Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid (NV), Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (IA); House Republicans Minority Leader John Boehner (OH), Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Bob Goodlatte  (VA); and Senate Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (KY) and Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Saxby Chambliss (GA).       

Take Action Now: 

--Contact Members of Congress:  Call and/or write your Members of Congress.  Click here for a template letter you can tailor.

--Site Visits:  Invite Members of Congress to visit nutrition program and other sites where they can meet low-income families and see how important food stamp benefits and TEFAP services are to help them feed their families.

--Member Meetings:  Ask to meet with your Members of Congress while they are home (before the State of the Union Message in late January).  Urge allies from other anti-hunger, religious, children's, elderly, union, human needs and other groups to join you for such a meeting.  Check with the district office of your Senators and Representative(s) to find out about any town hall meetings or other events your Members are hosting in January and plan to attend them and speak at them. 

--Leverage the Power of the Food Stamp Challenge:  Plan to shop and eat on $21 for a week in January or early February.  Ask Members of Congress and others in your community to join you.  Past Challengers garnered significant media attention about the fact that the $1 per person per meal food stamp average allotment and the $10 monthly minimum food stamp benefit are not adequate.  For the toolkit on mounting a Food Stamp Challenge, prepared by The Hatcher Group and FRAC, go to http://www.frac.org/pdf/FSC_Toolkit.pdf.  For technical assistance on mounting challenges, contact evollinger@frac.org

--Already Taken the Challenge?  Write an op-ed or letter to the editor that calls on your experience in the Challenge to buttress the case for investments in food stamps and TEFAP.

--Other Media Hooks:  Recent reports documenting the extent of need provide additional hooks for op eds and letters to the editor.  These include the release in December of the annual survey on hunger and homelessness from the U.S. Conference of Mayors; publication in November of new food insecurity data from USDA and of the numbers of people turning to Catholic Charities agencies in need of food; and a recent Newsweek article on rural nutrition.

Feedback and Assistance
For feedback and/or further assistance, contact evollinger@frac.org and eteller@frac.org