News

SNAP differences pose political challenges

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway says he hopes partisan differences in the farm bill that was marked up Wednesday can be cleared up before floor debate.  Committee democrats expressed disappointment in what has become a partisan measure.  In a news conference Thursday morning, Conaway told Brownfield Ag News he thought many of the concerns from democrats would make good amendments, but he says none in that regard were offered.

“When I said ‘no, we’re going strengthen work requirements,’ well that was a killer; they said ‘no, we’re not’” said Conaway Thursday morning.  “They sent a press release saying that the opposition to the changes that [Representative GT Thompson (R-Penn.)] and I were proposing was non-negotiable.”

Democrats’ concerns in committee debate centered on proposed work and training requirements to qualify for SNAP benefits.  Agriculture Committee Vice-Chairman Thompson says the time is right to take advantage of U.S. job growth.

“I’d hate to look at a person, a family who’s hungry and struggling financially, and think that we could give them just a little bit of a support and nudge to pursue and on-ramped opportunity, and I’d hate to have to look at them and say ‘we’ll get around to you, but it may be in six or seven years,’” said Representative Thompson.

The farm bill passed out of the House Agriculture Committee Wednesday by a vote of 26 to 20 along party lines.

AUDIO: Conaway and Thompson news conference (31 min. MP3)