[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 2] [House] [Pages 2134-2135] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]FARM BILL MUST NOT REDUCE FOOD STAMP BENEFITS (Mr. McGOVERN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.) Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, last year the House did its job and passed a fully funded farm bill with important improvements in the food stamp and TEFAP programs. The Senate, unfortunately, was not so responsible. Now that the farm bill negotiations are under way, we hear that reducing funding for food stamps and food banks is on the table. Mr. Speaker, this farm bill should not be negotiated on the backs of the hungry. Feeding hungry people is never wrong, but taking food out of their mouths is, and that's what a reduction in the House-passed domestic nutrition title would do. Mr. Speaker, we must draw a line in the sand and say enough is enough. House farm bill negotiators must stand up to the Senate and say, ``Not this time.'' The recently passed stimulus package does not include food stamp provisions, even though economists across the political spectrum agree that food stamps are one of the best ways to stimulate the economy. And now food stamps may be cut below the House-passed levels? We can and must do better. I submit for the Record a letter signed by 153 Democrats to the chairman of the Agriculture Committee urging him to hold the line and insist on the House-passed nutrition title in his negotiations. January 30, 2008. Hon. Colin C. Peterson, Chairman, Committee on Agriculture, Longworth House Office Building, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Peterson: We want to thank you and the Members of the Agriculture Committee for your hard work on H.R. 2419, the Farm, Nutrition and Bioenergy Act of 2007. We appreciate how well you balanced the needs of farmers and consumers in the legislation. One of the key reasons for [[Page 2135]] our support for the bill is the inclusion of a strong nutrition title that addresses the needs of the tens of millions of Americans, including many children and working families, who struggle against hunger by investing in and strengthening the Food Stamp Program. This bill also provides needed long-term support to our nation's food banks. As you know, hunger is getting worse in America while the costs of food, housing and utilities are rising. We have a responsibility to help low- and middle-income families as they face these challenges. The Farm Bill is a safety net that protects people from going hungry; it represents one of the single most important opportunities we have this year to address the needs of disadvantaged children, struggling working families, seniors and people with disabilities in `` our communities. We will be doing a disservice to anyone who must rely on these programs if we acquiesce to provisions that ultimately deny hungry Americans food in their time of need. New investments in the nutrition title are long overdue. The average food stamp benefit is a mere $1 a person a meal. The $10 minimum benefit has been stuck at the same level for 30 years. The $2,000 limit on assets for most food stamp households has not changed in two decades. And the shortfall in TEFAP commodities purchases is leaving many food bank shelves empty. It is vital that the conference agreement secure permanent funding at no less than the House-passed levels for the food stamp and TEFAP programs, and we strongly urge to include these improvements in the conference report. We commend you for the important improvements included in the nutrition title of the House-passed bill. While there are also many improvements in the nutrition title of the Senate- passed bill, there is a profound and very troubling difference between the House and Senate nutrition titles. The House bill would make these provisions permanent law while, under the Senate bill, all the major benefit improvements would terminate after 2012. Simply, this means that these important policy improvements would return to today's law, resulting in a major reduction in benefits to more than 10 million recipients. Should these improvements sunset in 2013 and return to the 2008 levels, more than 300,000 low-income people would be cut off from food stamps altogether. We should be working to end hunger in America. We think you would agree that a final conference agreement that sunsets and underfunds improvements in the nutrition title would be unacceptable. Again, we thank you for your commitment to the issues surrounding the people in our country who rely on programs like Food Stamps and TEFAP. We strongly urge the conference report to include permanent funding at no less than the House-passed levels for the food stamp and TEFAP programs. We look forward to working with you to maintain all of the critical improvements in these programs in the final Farm Bill. Sincerely, McGovern, James; DeLauro, Rosa; Woolsey, Lynn; Lee, Barbara; Solis, Hilda; Kilpatrick, Carolyn Cheeks; Moore, Dennis; Green, Al; Lewis, John; Filner, Bob; Moore, Gwen; Crowley, Joe; Neal, Richard; Grijalva, Raul; Maloney, Carolyn; Kildee, Dale; Nadler, Jerry; Jackson-Lee, Sheila; Kennedy, Patrick; Markey, Ed; Ellison, Keith; Capps, Lois; Towns, Ed; McDermott, Jim; Watt, Mel; Johnson, Hank; Becerra, Xavier; Hare, Phil; Shea-Porter, Carol; Arcuri, Mike; Tauscher, Ellen; Jefferson, William; Wu, David; Sutton, Betty; Frank, Barney. Davis, Danny; Allen, Tom; Cuellar, Henry; Gonzalez, Charles; Carnahan, Russ; Christensen, Donna; Waters, Maxine; Guitierez, Luis; Clarke, Yvette; Hinchey, Maurice; Serrano, Jose; DeFazio, Peter; Hirono, Mazie; Ryan, Tim; Clay, William Lacy; Schakowsky, Jan; McNulty, Mike; Weiner, Anthony; Brown, Corrine; Berman, Howard; Jones, Stephanie Tubbs; Doyle, Mike; Butterfield, G.K.; Olver, John; Michaud, Michael; Courtney, Joe; Davis, Susan; Levin, Sander; Matsui, Doris; Yarmuth, John; Murphy, Chris; Fattah, Chaka; Jackson, Jesse; Slaughter, Louise; Doggett, Lloyd; Schiff, Adam; Stark, Pete; Loebsack, Dave; Lynch, Stephen; Langevin, Jim; Oberstar, James; Rush, Bobby; Meek, Kendrick. Rothman, Steven; Berkley, Shelly; Miller, Brad; Wynn, Al; Kaptur, Marcy; Lowey, Nita; Welch, Peter; Thompson, Bennie; Farr, Sam; Hinojosa, Ruben; Sestak, Joe; Udall, Tom; Engel, Elliot; McCollum, Betty; Norton, Eleanor Holmes; Cummings, Elijah; Wilson, Charles; Pastor, Ed; Ortiz, Solomon; Murphy, Patrick; Miller, George; Delahunt, William; Sanchez, Linda; Sires, Albio; Larson, John; Baldwin, Tammy; Reyes, Silvestre; Wexler, Robert; Watson, Diane; Hodes, Paul; Honda, Michael; Velazquez, Nydia; Braley, Bruce; Price, David; Cardoza, Dennis; Napolitano, Grace; Larsen, Rick; Inslee, Jay; Pallone, Frank; Dingell, John; McNerny, Jerry; Tsongas, Niki; Scott, Bobby. Cohen, Steve; Gillibrand, Kirsten; Van Hollen, Chris; Murtha, John; Andrews, Rob; Cleaver, Emanuel; Brady, Robert; Conyers, John; Sanchez, Loretta; Sherman, Brad; Roybal-Allard, Lucille; Costello, Jerry; Lofgren, Zoe; Walz, Tim; Sarbanes, John; Hooley, Darlene; Bishop, Sanford; DeGette, Diana; Hall, John; Holt, Rush; Bishop, Tim Payne, Donald Pascrell, Bill Eshoo, Anna Higgins, Brian McCarthy, Carolyn; Davis, Artur; Schwartz, Allyson; Shuler, Heath; Costa, Jim; Castor, Kathy; Waxman, Henry. ____________________