DeLauro Statement on Connecticut’s Approval for Online SNAP Purchasing

WASHINGTON, DC — (May 20, 2020) Today, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education released the following statement after the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) approved Connecticut's application to provide households using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits the ability to make purchases online.

"I welcome today's move by the USDA to clear the way for Connecticut families with SNAP benefits to make grocery purchases online. The coronavirus pandemic has hit Connecticut particularly hard, so innovative solutions like this that help prevent the spread of this deadly disease are critical to defeating this public health and economic crisis. COVID-19 has exacerbated the problem of hunger in our communities, which makes helping families put food on their table is more critical than ever. This is a good first step toward that goal, and I look forward to supporting our State leaders in their efforts to implement this new program and make families aware once the proper systems are in place in the coming weeks."

A recent study from researchers at Yale University and Tufts University found that, in states participating in the USDA's Online Purchasing Pilot program, 90 percent of people living in food deserts could receive grocery delivery to their homes.

DeLauro fought and secured a 15 percent increase in the maximum monthly SNAP benefit in the newly House-passed Heroes Act—an even larger increase than the one she fought to include in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act during the Great Recession.

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