UnidosUS Applauds Passage of Senate Bipartisan Farm Bill

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WASHINGTON, DC—Today, in an 86-11 vote, the U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan farm bill sponsored by Committee Chairman Roberts and Ranking Member Stabenow. The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, which stands in stark contrast to the harsh and extreme House Republican Leadership’s farm bill, seeks to strengthen and protect the well-being of millions of hardworking Americans—including Latinos.

“Passage of today’s farm bill is an example of what we need more of, elected officials working across the aisle to craft sensible solutions that give hardworking Americans and their families the opportunity to be healthy and economically secure. While not perfect, this bill protects critical programs like SNAP, decreasing the likelihood that families will have to choose between paying their bills or putting food on the table,” said UnidosUS President and CEO Janet Murguía.

Unlike the narrowly passed House measure, the Senate’s bill does not call for major reforms to SNAP. The nutrition provisions allow more states to participate in the program and allocates nearly $185 million in additional funding for SNAP’s ongoing Employment and Training (E&T) pilot programs. The bill also would make needed investments to modernize the program and facilitate the application process for seniors and people with disabilities.

By contrast, the House bill would have exacerbated economic hardship for the more than 40 million Americans who depend on SNAP by gutting nearly $20 billion in funding, imposing further restrictions to the program’s eligibility requirements and tacking on additional work requirements to discourage families from being able to access nutrition assistance. Such provisions would have disproportionately impacted our nation’s most vulnerable families and jeopardized a program with proven results.