DeLauro Visits the Connecticut Food Bank and Stands up for SNAP

WALLINGFORD, CT (March 8, 2016) — Today Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) visited Connecticut Food Bank’s new facility in Wallingford to highlight the importance of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which lifts millions of Americans out of poverty each year.

“Food insecurity affects the lives of people across the nation, from working families and children, to seniors and veterans. SNAP is one of our greatest resources in addressing hunger and when we give the program the support it deserves, we lift up the entire community,” said Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. “The stakes are too high to let Speaker Ryan and Republicans attack SNAP. Children and families depend on the program’s benefits, and its positive economic impact is too great to ignore.”

During a tour of the facility, DeLauro was joined by Paul O’Leary, Interim CEO of the Connecticut Food Bank, Lucy Nolan, Executive Director of End Hunger Connecticut!, and SNAP recipients.

“Cuts in funding for federal assistance programs like SNAP would force people with limited incomes to seek charitably donated food from community-based nonprofit food assistance programs, further straining the human service safety net. The end result is to reduce access to nutritious food for people in need from all sources,” said Paul O’Leary, Interim CEO of the Connecticut Food Bank.

“SNAP helps people every day when they need it most, including a family of seven where both parents lost their senior level jobs. SNAP was there to bridge the gap and help this family during a time in need. What would happen to the five children without this critical program?” said Lucy Nolan, Executive Director of End Hunger Connecticut!.

Across the nation, SNAP lifted 4.7 million Americans, including 2.1 million children, out of poverty in 2014 alone. In Connecticut, more than 439,000 residents receive an average of $131.95 per month in SNAP benefits, with an additional 250,000 households receiving an average monthly benefit of $233.60. In Connecticut’s Third Congressional District, SNAP helped over 34,000 families from 2011 to 2013.

Research shows that among children who grew up in disadvantaged households with access to SNAP, there is an 18 percent increase in the likelihood of completing high school. If SNAP benefits are reduced, it would likely lead to increased odds of household and child hunger, developmental delays in children, underweight children, and poor academic performance among elementary students.

Last week, DeLauro sent a letter to her Democratic colleagues in the House, urging them to join her in protecting America’s safety net programs from attacks by Republicans. She also led House Democrats in denouncing Speaker Ryan’s new Republican task force on poverty. And last month during a hearing on the budget, DeLauro called on Republicans to stop attempting to enact harmful policies on SNAP, which include block-granting the program, requiring drug tests, and limiting certain foods.

DeLauro recently finalized a report on America’s social safety net, detailing the positive results that anti-poverty programs have for millions of America’s working families and discrediting the GOP’s attempts to dismantle them.

###