The government will cut food assistance used by one in seven Americans
This week, the U.S. Congress began considering cutting the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by more than $5 billion. The initiative to cut spending was proposed by the conservative wing of the Republican Party, reports Reuters. In total, the U.S. government will spend $63.43 billion on the assistance program in 2013. The program is planned to be cut by 7%.
If the conservatives' initiative gets the green light (and it most likely will, because it was part of a budget compromise), one in seven Americans will be forced to cut their food spending.
SNAP is one of the most well-known programs of the U.S. authorities, aimed at supporting people with incomes below the poverty line, as well as unemployed U.S. citizens. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is responsible for its implementation, which distributes funds among those in need.
As of October 2013, more than 46 million people participate in the program, with $133 spent per person per month. To become a participant, a single American must earn less than $15,280 per year, and the annual income of a family of four must be less than $31,320.
Initially, the government food program provided that each participant received from the U.S. government coupons of brown, blue, and green colors in denominations of $1, $5, and $10, respectively. With these coupons, low-income Americans could buy food items participating in the program, the list of which is approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. However, some program participants used fraudulent schemes to cash in government assistance.
In the late 1990s, coupons were replaced with plastic cards, which, according to American politicians, was supposed to reduce the number of frauds with government subsidies. But the introduction of plastic cards did not meet the expectations of American officials. Americans continue to illegally cash in government coupons, forcing congressmen to introduce amendments that tighten existing legislation. Now Republicans also explain their desire to cut program funding by various fraudulent schemes used by its participants.
Human rights activists, meanwhile, are concerned: the Republicans' initiative will increase social stratification in American society, pushing a large number of Americans below the poverty line. Democrats are also outraged by the conservatives' proposal, urging Republicans not to sacrifice the well-being of citizens for the sake of their political ambitions. House Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called the bill "an attack on the lives and well-being of millions of American families."
Based on materials from Gazeta.Ru