Celia Cole, CEO of the Texas Food Bank Network’s statement on failure of House farm bill:
“Today the House of Representatives rightly rejected a bill that would have significantly increased hunger in Texas. We estimate that nearly 171,000 Texans – mostly children, elderly and people with disabilities – would have lost access to SNAP (aka food stamps) if this short-sighted, misinformed bill had become law.
“We are encouraged that many Members of Congress, including representatives from Texas saw the folly of taking food away from our poorest neighbors in the name of deficit reduction. We thank these Members for rejecting policies that would have made people hungrier, and were written without a single public hearing.
“SNAP is one of the most effective, efficient and targeted federal programs. Its high costs simply mirror the number of Americans struggling to make ends meet, and economists agree these costs will decrease significantly as our economy improves. As hard as our food banks work, our statewide charitable network is unequipped to replace the 482 million meals that we estimate this bill would have cost hungry Texans over the next ten years.
“We understand there are many legislators and outside groups who are disappointed in the failure of this bill, which also included provisions for farmers, food manufacturers and conservation programs. We urge them to come back to the table with a bill that does not take meals away from families who are least equipped to fight back.”
