DeLauro Highlights Impact Of Proposed Farm Bill On Hungry Families

Press Release

At a press conference today with Connecticut anti-hunger leaders, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) highlighted the impact of the proposed Farm Bill on hungry families in Connecticut and across the nation. The U.S. House of Representatives' version of that bill will be debated by the full chamber as soon as next week.

"Nearly 50 million Americans, including over 16 million children, are struggling with hunger. Here in Connecticut's Third Congressional District, nearly one in seven households are not sure if they can afford enough food to feed their families. Food Stamps are America's most important effort to deal with hunger at home and ensure families can put food on the table. But the bill we are expecting to debate next week slashes more than $20 billion from Food Stamps, hurting millions of Americans. These hurtful cuts are a dereliction of our responsibilities to the American people, and our moral responsibility to help the least fortunate among us."

The bill expected to come before the House of Representatives next week would force nearly two million low-income Americans to go hungry, including one million children. It would also kick roughly 210,000 low-income children off of the school lunch program. And many more low-income Americans, mostly seniors and working families with children, would lose their benefits due to changes in the relationship between the calculation of Food Stamp benefits and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

Joining DeLauro were: Nancy Carrington, President and CEO, Connecticut Food Bank; Lucy Nolan, Executive Director, End Hunger Connecticut; Shonda Hinton, Cornerstone Christian Church; Reverend Doctor Shelly Stackhouse, Church of the Redeemer, United Church of Christ; and Penelope Davis of Orange.

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