Annie We Didn't Send You to DC to be a Blue Dog, part 2

Proud 2 join bipartisan colleagues in advancing #FarmBill - imp step fwd 4 farmers/consumers/rural communities in #NH 1.usa.gov/107mxw4
— Ann McLane Kuster (@RepAnnieKuster) May 16, 2013

As you can see, Congresswoman Kuster is PROUD of her vote. 

Hey, kids, guess what is in that vote? Some drastic cuts to the food stamp (SNAP) program. From The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities:

On May 15, the House Agriculture Committee passed its 2013 farm bill, H.R. 1947 (the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, or FARRM).[1]   The bill would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program) by almost $21 billion over the next decade, eliminating food assistance to nearly 2 million low-income people, mostly working families with children and senior citizens. 

and

The bill’s SNAP cuts would come on top of an across-the-board reduction in benefits that every SNAP recipient will experience starting November 1, 2013.  On that date, the increase in SNAP benefits established by the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) will end, resulting in a loss of approximately $25 in monthly SNAP benefits for a family of four.  Placing the SNAP cuts in this farm bill on top of the benefit cuts that will take effect in November is likely to put substantial numbers of poor families at risk of food insecurity.The majority of the bill’s SNAP cuts come from eliminating a state option known as “categorical eligibility.”  Congress created this option in the 1996 welfare law, allowing states to provide food assistance to households — primarily low-income working families and seniors — that have gross incomes or assets modestly above federal SNAP limits but disposable incomes in most cases below the poverty line.

In other words, if you're a low wage working family but you have a CAR - you're gonna have to figure out a way to feed that car to the kids. 

• The bill would terminate SNAP eligibility for several million people.  By eliminating the categorical eligibility state option, which over 40 states have adopted, the bill would cut nearly 2 million low-income people off SNAP. 
• Several hundred thousand low-income children would lose access to free school meals.  According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), 210,000 children in low-income families whose eligibility for free school meals is tied to their receipt of SNAP would lose free school meals when their families lose SNAP benefits.

This is what Congresswoman Kuster is proud to have voted for. 

Some quick NH poverty facts. Living in poverty: 

12% of  children.

9% of seniors.

10% of women. 

26% of single parent families. 

The overal poverty rate is 8.7%. The extreme poverty rate is 4.4%. 

9.6% of NH residents live with food insecurity. 

44, 000 New Hampshire children receive SNAP benefits. 

Ann Kuster voted, proudly, against the poor, the elderly, women, single parent families, and above all the children of our state. 

The excuse for all of this is reining in "out of control program growth." Funny how they never say that about weapons spending. Tell your Congresscritter you want cuts to the Pentagon budget, not cuts that take food away from children. 

The bill goes to the full House next. There's plenty of time to make a bunch of noise about this. If you live in Kuster's district, be sure to express your displeasure. And start thinking seriously an actual progressive candidate to run against her in the primary next year. 

Kuster's offices: 

137 Cannon House Office Building

Washington, DC 20515

Phone: (202) 225-5206

18 North Main Street, Fourth Floor

Concord, NH 03301

Phone: (603) 226-1002
Fax: (603) 21010
Hours: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Monday - Friday

70 East Pearl Street

Nashua, NH 03060

Phone: (603) 595-2006
Fax: (603) 595-2016
Hours: 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Monday - Friday