Urge President Obama to Support SNAP in his FY2013 Budget

Send President Obama an e-mail urging him in his FY2013 budget proposal to:

1) continue his support for and proposal to fund the restoration of the ARRA SNAP benefit boost

2) suspend the SNAP time limits for certain working-age, low-income adults without dependents.

Subject:

Your Letter:

I urge you to continue your strong support for SNAP and other nutrition and low-income safety net programs in your FY2013 Budget Request to Congress.  In particular, I applauded your FY2012 budget proposal: to restore the cut in the temporary SNAP benefit boost created by ARRA (the cut was made in 2010 to partially finance The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act); and to suspend the time limits on benefits for certain working-age, low-income adults without dependents.  I urge you to include these provisions in your FY2013 budget proposal.

Without a continuation of the ARRA SNAP benefit boost, SNAP monthly benefits will be reduced for tens of millions of people in November 2013.  The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the initial drop in monthly SNAP benefits will be between $10 and $15 per person—approximately a 10 percent reduction in average benefits.

On December 16, 174 House Members wrote to you that “[i]t is imperative that we not take nutrition benefits from Americans that are struggling to stay out of poverty and to feed themselves and their family.”

Hunger, food insecurity, joblessness, low wages for many with jobs, and poverty are significant problems affecting very large numbers of people in the U.S.—especially young adults, parents, children, seniors and people with disabilities—and are expected to persist at unacceptably high levels. In 2010, SNAP, with its benefit levels boosted by ARRA, lifted 3.9 million people out of poverty. It is more important than ever to retain the ARRA SNAP benefit boost and to get people the resources they need to obtain an adequate diet throughout the month.

I thank you for your ongoing support for SNAP and the nutrition safety net programs.

President Barack Obama

Phone:(202) 456-1111

Fax:(202) 456-2461