Chairwoman Stabenow Applauds USDA Measures to Cut Down on Food Stamp Abuse
U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow, Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, applauded new strategies announced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) designed to improve the integrity of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps. The USDA announcement comes after Stabenow's 2012 Farm Bill passed the Senate with a strong bipartisan vote in June, including a number of provisions to crack down on fraud and abuse in SNAP.
"Yesterday's announcement from USDA is a good step forward. Now Congress needs to pass the Farm Bill, which takes further steps to crack down on fraud and misuse in food assistance programs," said Stabenow. "Especially now, with so many families struggling to make ends meet, we must ensure that every dollar of food assistance goes where it is truly needed."
Stabenow's Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act, also known as the 2012 Farm Bill, passed the Senate with a strong bipartisan vote of 64-35 in June. In addition to cracking down on fraud and abuse, the 2012 Farm Bill represents the biggest reform in agriculture policy in decades, consolidating programs, ends direct payments (subsidies paid to farmers for crops they don't even grow), and cutting $23 billion in spending. The House of Representatives has yet to take up a Farm Bill.
