The U.S. House of Representatives voted for massive cuts to the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program last week, shaving $40 billion off the budget for the next 10 years, the Washington Times reports. These cuts might pose a major threat to the low-income veterans who rely on food stamps to live.
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, approximately 900,00 low-income veterans receive benefits from SNAP each month. An estimated 170,000 of those veterans might be negatively affected by two key sections of the House's budget bill.
About 120,000 veterans might lose their benefits due to the "Southerland" provision, which eliminates assistance to non-elderly unemployed adults who were unable to secure employment through a job program, according to the source. An additional 50,000 veterans might be at-risk under the second provision, which cuts food assistance to people ages 18 to 50 living in areas of high unemployment. The source also states that veterans might lose their benefits due to other cuts targeting low-income families with high child-care costs.
Supporters of the bill claim its intent is not to eradicate SNAP but to cut down on fraud and abuse within the system, the Washington Times reports. However, the news outlet states that millions of unemployed citizens will lose their benefits if the bill is passed.