Bread: Congressional Update – 4/13/2011

Inside Washington

• Congress will be on its Easter recess the weeks of April 18, 2011, and April 25, 2011, returning to work in Washington on May 2.

Bread’s Issues

Protecting Hungry and Poor People in Budget Decisions

• Bread for the World is a leader in a new coalition of organizations urging Congress to form a “circle of protection” around programs for hungry and poor people. As they make decisions about the budget for 2012 and beyond, legislators should avoid creating additional hardship for vulnerable people.
• To draw attention to the importance of protecting safety-net and emergency programs, Bread President David Beckmann was on a water-only fast from March 28 through April 3. From April 4 through Easter (April 24), he is fasting each day from sunrise to sunset. Several thousand Bread members are also participating in this call to realign our country’s priorities.
• About 40 organizations and more than 30,000 individuals are participating in the coalition effort, including 28 members of Congress who each pledged to fast for 24 hours.
• Among the congressional participants is Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), who said, “The budget that was unveiled [April 6] in Congress falls significantly short of ensuring that low and middle-income families have access to healthy, nutritious meals. In fact, it makes it harder for vulnerable populations to combat hunger. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me and take part in this hunger fast.”
• Media coverage of Bread’s call for a “circle of protection” and Beckmann’s and Bread members’ fast includes CNN, USA Today, The New York Times, and National Public Radio’s “The Kojo Nnamdi Show.”
• To learn more about why and how to participate in Bread’s continuing efforts on the budget, visit www.bread.org/lent2011.

FY2011 Budget

• On April 8, at literally the eleventh hour (after 11 p.m.), congressional leaders agreed on a spending bill for the remainder of FY2011, which ends September 30, 2011.The agreement averted a shutdown of the U.S. government set to begin at midnight.
• The deal cuts $38 billion from FY2011 spending. This figure includes $12 billion included in the previous short-term continuing resolutions that funded the government for the first half of the fiscal year. The package is said to include an across-the-board $1 billion in cuts to non-defense discretionary funding as well as cuts to mandatory spending. Bread staff is analyzing details of the package as they become available.
• The agreement does not contain many of the policy “riders” attached to the House bill, including several that were contentious during negotiations.  

FY2012 Budget

• The first vote of the FY2012 budget process took place April 6, when the House Budget Committee passed the budget resolution proposed by committee chair Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI).
• The budget approved by the committee pays for $4.2 trillion in tax cuts over 10 years by cutting $4.3 billion in spending over 10 years. Two-thirds of the spending cuts would be to low-income programs.
• The proposal makes the Bush-era tax cuts permanent and reduces top individual and corporate tax rates from 35 percent to 25 percent.
• Under the Ryan bill, both SNAP (formerly food stamps) and Medicaid would become block grants. A block grant for SNAP means there would be a fixed amount of money for the program–thus preventing it from responding to economic downturns and increased need by serving additional eligible people.
• Perhaps of most concern in the long run, Ryan’s plan would cap federal spending at levels far below what will be needed to meet the government’s future obligations.
• An administration statement said that the Ryan bill “cuts taxes for millionaires and special interests while placing a greater burden on seniors who depend on Medicare or live in nursing homes, families struggling with a child who has serious disabilities, workers who have lost their health care coverage, and students and their families who rely on Pell grants.”
• The House is expected to pass Ryan’s budget bill before leaving for Easter recess, but the Senate will not take up an equivalent bill.

Debt Ceiling

• The Treasury Department expects the United States to reach its debt ceiling (the country’s credit limit) by May 16, 2011. There is a possibility of stretching this deadline to early July with last-ditch tactics.
• Once the debt ceiling is reached, the Treasury Department would not be able to borrow money to pay its current obligations—such as interest on the national debt—until Congress raises the debt limit. This has never happened in U.S. history.
• Many members of Congress have said, however, that they will not vote to raise the debt ceiling unless it is accompanied by significant spending cuts or controls.

Deficit Reduction

• On April 13, President Obama will deliver an address with details of his administration’s deficit reduction plan.
• A bipartisan group of six senators is working intensively to develop a comprehensive deficit reduction package based on the December 2010 recommendations from the President’s Fiscal Commission.
• Reportedly, the group will issue its recommendations within two to three weeks.

Act Now

Call your senators and tell them that as they make decisions about reducing the deficit and the nation’s debt ceiling, they must stand firm against budget cuts to programs for hungry and poor people.

Points to make:

• The U.S. population is just beginning to recover from the recession. More than 43 million low-income people—one in every eight Americans—currently receive SNAP (formerly food stamps) benefits to help make ends meet.
• Capping all federal spending prevents important safety-net programs, like SNAP, from responding to economic downturns. Instead, Congress must make smart and responsible choices about where to make cuts.
• Safety-net programs such as WIC, SNAP, and Head Start make up only a fraction of the nation’s budget, so cutting them will not fix the budget deficit. It will only create further hardship for millions of families.
• U.S. global hunger and poverty programs account for less than 1 percent of our total budget. These programs literally save lives. They also contribute to a safer world for all by offering some hope to people so deeply poor that they become desperate.

Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Save the Date!

Please hold the dates for Bread for the World’s National Gathering 2011: June 11-14, 2011, in Washington, DC. We have something new for the National Gathering: an international meeting with experts on reducing malnutrition among women and children. Lobby Day on June 14 will also be part of the National Gathering.

Please put June 11-14 on your calendar now. For updated information, visit www.bread.org/gather.

Congressional Update – 3/29/2011

Washington Update on the 112th Congress

Inside Washington

• Congress was in recess last week and has now returned to work in Washington.
• Members of Congress continue to focus on issues surrounding government spending for the remainder of FY2011.
• The federal government is currently operating under a continuing resolution (CR) that expires April 8, 2011.

Bread’s Issues

Protecting Hungry and Poor People in Budget Decisions

• Bread for the World is a leader in a new coalition of organizations urging Congress to form a “circle of protection” around programs for hungry and poor people as legislators address budget deficits.
• On March 28, David Beckmann, president of Bread; Tony Hall, director of the Alliance to End Hunger; and other advocacy leaders began a weeklong, water-only fast to draw attention to the harm that indiscriminate cuts to non-security discretionary spending would cause hungry and poor people.
• Beckmann said, “The debate about the federal deficit is really a debate about national priorities. We invite God to reshape our personal priorities and the priorities of our nation.”
• Bread members and other people of faith and conscience are invited to participate in fasting, other acts of personal sacrifice, and prayer from March 28 to April 3, to urge members of Congress to avoid creating additional hardship for vulnerable people as they make decisions on deficit reduction and other spending issues for 2011 and 2012. For more information, visit www.bread.org/lent2011.
• About 40 organizations and 4,000 activists have joined the fast. In addition to Bread and the Alliance to End Hunger, they include groups such as Sojourners, NETWORK: A Catholic Social Justice Lobby, MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, and Universities Fighting World Hunger.

FY2011 Budget

• The administration and several congressional leaders have said that the current short-term extension of spending authority should be the last. Congress must reach an agreement that covers federal government operations from April 9 through the end of FY2011 on September 30, 2011, or the government will shut down.

Other Budget Concerns

2012 Budget

• Work is beginning on the 2012 budget. House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) has indicated he will release his budget the week of April 4.

Debt Ceiling

• The U.S. Treasury reports that the United States could reach its debt ceiling (the country’s credit limit) as early as April 15.
• Once the debt ceiling is reached, the Treasury Department would not be able to borrow money to pay its current obligations—such as interest on the national debt—until Congress raises the debt limit. This has never happened in U.S. history.
• Many members of Congress have said, however, that they will not vote to raise the debt ceiling unless it is accompanied by significant spending cuts or controls.

Deficit Reduction Commission

• A bipartisan group of six senators is working to develop a comprehensive deficit reduction package based on the December 2010 recommendations from the President’s Fiscal Commission.

Act Now

Call your representative and senators and tell them that in reaching a compromise budget for the remainder of FY2011, they must stand firm against budget cuts to programs for hungry and poor people.

Points to Make:

• In the wake of the economic downturn, these programs are more important than ever.
• Domestic programs such as WIC, SNAP (formerly food stamps), and Head Start make up only a fraction of the budget. Cutting them will not reduce the deficit and will only create further hardship for millions of families.
• Global hunger and poverty programs in developing countries account for less than 1 percent of the total budget. These vital humanitarian and development programs save lives and help alleviate the underlying causes of global hunger and poverty—all of which also contribute to greater stability and prosperity at home and abroad.

Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Save the Date!

Please hold the dates for Bread for the World’s National Gathering 2011: June 11-14, 2011, in Washington, DC. We have something new for the National Gathering: an international meeting with experts on reducing malnutrition among the world’s children. Lobby Day on June 14 will also be part of the National Gathering.

Please put June 11-14 on your calendar now.

Hunger legislative Update

Washington Update on the 112th Congress

Inside Washington

• Congress continues its focus on issues surrounding the budget for the remainder of FY2011.
• The continuing resolution (CR) that is temporarily funding government operations expires this Friday, March 18. Before then, the House and Senate will pass another CR to keep the government running through April 8.

Bread’s Issues

2011 Budget

• Last week, senators voted on two budget bills, both of which required 60 votes to pass—both failed.
• The first vote was on the bill passed by the House in February, which contained $61 billion in cuts to discretionary spending. It was voted down by a vote of 44-56. All Democrats plus three conservative Republicans—who favor deeper cuts—opposed the bill.
• A second bill proposed by Senate Democrats would have cut a total of $6.5 billion from the budget for the remainder of FY2011. It failed by a vote of 42-58. All Republicans, 10 moderate Democrats, and one Independent opposed this bill.
• This week, both the House and Senate will vote on a new continuing resolution that would run through April 8. The draft resolution continues the $2 billion per week in cuts (the approximate weekly amount of the $61 billion in cuts in the bill that was passed by the House but rejected by the Senate). So far, the cuts mainly mirror those in the president’s FY2012 budget request.
• Vice President Biden is working with congressional leaders to negotiate a compromise budget for the remainder of FY2011 (which ends September 30) before the new continuing resolution expires April 8.

Other Budget Concerns

2012 Budget

• Work is beginning on the 2012 budget. House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) has indicated he will release his budget the week of April 4.
• The House Budget Committee will likely take up the budget resolution that week and send it to the House floor the following week. It is unlikely to pass in the Senate.

Debt Ceiling

• The U.S. Treasury reports that the United States could reach its debt ceiling (the country’s credit limit) as early as April 15.
• Once the debt ceiling is reached, the Treasury Department would not be able to borrow money to pay its current obligations—such as interest on the national debt—until Congress raises the debt limit. This has never happened in U.S. history.
• Many members of Congress have said, however, that they will not vote to raise the debt ceiling unless it is accompanied by significant spending cuts or controls.

Deficit Reduction Commission

• A bipartisan group of six senators is working to develop a comprehensive deficit reduction package based on the December 2010 recommendations from the President’s Fiscal Commission.

Act Now

Call your representative and senators and tell them that in reaching a compromise budget for the remainder of FY2011, they must stand firm against budget cuts to programs for hungry and poor people.

Points to Make:

• In the wake of the economic downturn, these programs are more important than ever.
• Domestic programs such as WIC, SNAP (formerly food stamps), and Head Start make up only a fraction of the budget. Cutting them will not reduce the deficit and will only create further hardship for millions of families.
• Global hunger and poverty programs in developing countries account for less than 1 percent of the total budget. These vital humanitarian and development programs save lives and help alleviate the underlying causes of global hunger and poverty–all of which contribute to greater stability and prosperity at home and abroad.

Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Save the Date!

Please hold the dates for Bread for the World’s National Gathering 2011: June 11-14, 2011, in Washington, DC. We have something new for the National Gathering an international meeting with experts on reducing malnutrition among the world’s children. Lobby Day on June 14 will also be part of the National Gathering.

Please put June 11-14 on your calendar now.

Congressional update 3/2. Don’t balance the budget on the backs of the poor.

Washington Update on the 112th Congress

Inside Washington

• Congress has returned to work in Washington following last week’s President’s Day recess.

Bread’s Issues

2011 Budget

• House and Senate leaders struck a deal yesterday that provides funding for the government for two more weeks, thus avoiding a shutdown for the moment. Both the House and the Senate are expected to approve the bill by March 3.
• (On March 1, the House passed a two-week extension, funding the government until March 18 while the House and Senate work out an agreement for the rest of the fiscal year. The extension itself contains $4 billion in cuts—roughly two weeks’ worth of the $60 billion in cuts in the House bill. But because the cuts include earmarks as well as cuts identified in the president’s 2012 budget request, Senate Democrats have signaled they will pass the two-week extension).
• The Senate will not agree to the spending cuts for the remainder of FY2011 that were passed by the House on February 19. The House proposal includes cuts that would harm hungry and poor people, including survivors of conflict and natural disasters overseas who receive U.S. food aid and low-income infants and young children who participate in WIC here at home.

2012 Budget

• On February 14, President Obama sent his budget request for fiscal year 2012 to Congress.
• The total international affairs request is $61.4 billion. This request includes more than $1 billion for Feed the Future, the U.S. global food security initiative.
• Overall, the president’s request supports U.S. programs that serve low-income people. The proposal would restore the cuts to SNAP funding included in the child nutrition bill passed late last year. The budget request also includes money for new grants to expand school breakfast programs as well as “child hunger challenge” grants for states. Both grant programs were created under the 2010 child nutrition reauthorization and respond to Bread’s priorities for better access and participation in nutrition programs.
• However, the request includes a 50 percent cut for both LIHEAP, which helps low-income families pay their heating and cooling bills, and community development block grants.

Act Now

Call both your senators and tell them that in balancing the budget, they must stand firm against budget cuts to programs that help hungry and poor people.

Points to Make:

• In the wake of the economic downturn, these programs are more important than ever.
• Low-income programs make up only a fraction of the budget. Cutting them will not reduce the deficit and would only create further hardship for millions of families.

Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Save the Date!

Please hold the dates for Bread for the World’s National Gathering 2011: June 11-14, 2011, in Washington, DC. We have something new for the National Gathering an international meeting with experts on reducing malnutrition among the world’s children. Lobby Day on June 14 will also be part of the National Gathering.

Please put June 11-14 on your calendar now.

Two big victories for hungry people!

Bread for the World scored two major victories last week. Congress passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (also known as the Child Nutrition Reauthorization), and immediately afterward passed the Middle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010.

These are two big, big victories for millions of working poor families and for America’s children, especially the one in four kids who live in households that struggle to put food on the table.

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act now goes to the president for his signature. It will ensure that millions of schoolchildren get healthier lunches and breakfasts, and that more kids will find it easier to get these meals.

The Middle Class Tax Relief Act makes permanent the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit—the goal of Bread for the World’s 2010 Offering of Letters. This bill now goes to the Senate for its consideration.

These bills are early Christmas gifts. Thank you for all your support. And thanks be to God!

*************************************

Here is the Oregon Food banks update on he hunger free kids bill:

Congress passed child nutrition reauthorization today, ending a two-year legislative process.  By a vote of 264 to 157 the House of Representatives passed the Healthy, Hunger-free Kids Act (S. 3307) with bipartisan support. We thank Oregon Representatives Wu, Schrader, and Blumenauer for voting in favor of the bill. Representative DeFazio did not cast a vote. The Senate passed S. 3307 in August (Oregon Senators Wyden and Merkley voted in favor) so the bill will now go to the White House for President Obama’s signature.

We thank all of you for your efforts to make the child nutrition bill as strong as it is. These are extremely difficult economic times, and the congressional climate leans away from increased spending. Despite that, child nutrition advocates raised their voices and Congress responded  with record new investments.

That said, S. 3307 is a mixed bag.

The Healthy, Hunger-free Kids Act invests an additional $4.5 billion in child nutrition programs over the next ten years, falling short of the investments needed to meet President Obama’s commitment to end childhood hunger by 2015. While not as robust as we would have liked, the bill does contain several provisions that will improve the nutritional quality of meals in schools, child care centers, and summer meal programs. The bill:

• invests $40 million in farm-to-school programs
• improves school lunches
• makes all foods sold on school campuses healthier

Sadly, to help pay for these new provisions, Congress cut future Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamp) benefits included in last year’s economic stimulus package.

 

Oregon Food Bank supported the passage of this bill because it is the best bill we could get in the current economic and political climate. We are disappointed that SNAP (food stamp) cuts were used to pay for improvements in child nutrition programs. SNAP serves as the first line of defense against hunger in the United States and the program provides crucial nutrition assistance to a record 730,000 Oregonians. Along with many of you, we fought hard in 2007-8 to raise benefit levels during the reauthorization of the farm bill.

 

We must, and will, raise our voices in support of SNAP and restore the cuts before they take effect in three years.  With your help, we will do just that…because no one should be hungry.

Congressional Update 9/15/2010

  

Congressional Update during the 111th Congress

Inside Washington

• Both houses of Congress returned to work in Washington this week. The Senate is scheduled to be in session until October 8. The House is expected to adjourn by October 1. Congress is expected to return for a “lame duck” legislative session after the November 2 elections.
• Bread President David Beckmann was a featured speaker at the National Press Club yesterday, September 13, on the topic “Ending Hunger: The People and Congress.” He laid out the priorities for poor and hungry people that Congress must address. It was televised live by C-SPAN.
• For the second year in a row, Bread for the World’s director of government relations, Monica Mills, has been named one of The Hill newspaper’s Top Lobbyists of 2010 for effective advocacy. The award is a tribute to her and to all of Bread’s activists, who do the grassroots anti-hunger lobbying that makes our legislative victories possible. Congratulations!

Bread’s Issues

Tax Credits for Low-Income Working Families

• The current Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit benefit levels that Bread is working to make permanent are part of a tax package that includes the Bush era tax cuts.
• The contentious congressional debate over whether to extend these 2001 and 2003 tax cuts is now front-page news. We expect that whatever portion of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts Congress extends, it will also contain the EITC and Child Tax Credit improvements as part of the package.
• If Congress only extends the current EITC and Child Tax Credit benefit levels for an additional year or two, this could spell trouble for making the improvements permanent for two reasons. First, the provision to exempt the EITC and Child Tax Credit from “pay-as-you-go” cost offset rules is only in effect for this year. Second, the long-term budget outlook will only worsen as time goes on.

Child Nutrition Reauthorization

• Child nutrition reauthorization bills have now passed the full Senate and the House Education and Labor Committee. The current law expires September 30, 2010.
• Bread supports the House committee version (H.R. 5504, the Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act). This bill is a better reflection of Bread’s priorities of increasing access and participation for low-income children, particularly at breakfast, after school, and during the summer months.
• The Senate bill (S. 3307, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010) is partially paid for by cuts to future SNAP/food stamp benefits. Bread strongly opposes paying for essential child nutrition programs by taking resources from another critical nutrition program (which itself benefits nearly 20 million U.S. children).

Poverty-Focused Development

• From September 20-22, the United Nations will host a summit in New York on the progress of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). President Obama will attend, along with about 100 other heads of state.
• Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Ireland’s Foreign Minister, Peter Power, will co-host an event focused on maternal and child nutrition. Bread President David Beckmann will be the sole American NGO speaker at the event, September 21. He will emphasize the importance of nutrition as a top priority of both hunger and agriculture initiatives.

FY11 International Affairs Appropriations

• The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved the FY11 State-Foreign Operations appropriations. The bill provides a total funding level of $54.1 billion — about $2.5 billion less than the president’s request.
• It is unlikely that either the Senate or the House will take further action on the FY11 international affairs budget until after the November elections. Instead, Congress is likely to pass a “continuing resolution” to fund government operations from the beginning of the fiscal year (October 1, 2010) through the elections. Continuing resolutions usually fund programs at the previous fiscal year’s levels.

ACT NOW

• Congress is now debating child nutrition legislation that is critical in connecting hungry kids to available programs at breakfast, after school, and during the summer. Ask your members of Congress to pass the House version of child nutrition reauthorization by September 30.
• Currently, of the 19.4 million children receiving free and reduced-priced lunches at school, only about 9 million receive breakfast and only 12 percent have access to a summer feeding site.
• If Congress fails to reauthorize these child nutrition programs, many critical program improvements targeted at closing the gap between lunch, breakfast, and summer food will not go into effect.

Sen. _____ U.S. Senate Washington, DC 20510	and	Rep. _____ U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515
Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121

Oregon Food Bank Action alert on Tanf emergency fund

Urgent Action: Please send Sen. Ron Wyden and Sen. Jeff Merkley an email through our easy online system to support the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund.

 

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) created an Emergency Contingency Fund under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. It is set to expire on September 30, 2010. Oregon, Washington, and other states used this fund to create subsidized jobs in the private and public sectors. By the time it expires at the end of this month, the fund will have created approximately 250,000 jobs nationwide for low-income parents and older youth who would otherwise be unemployed.

Oregon and Washington also used this fund to provide basic, short-term assistance to increasing numbers of poor families with children. As unemployment remains high and more workers exhaust their unemployment benefits, these emergency funds are more important than ever.

Please write to your senators and ask them to immediately extend the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund which will bolster job creation, keep much-needed income in local economies, support local businesses, and make it possible for low-income parents to cover basic expenses.

 

Contact Your Senators Now

 

…because no one should be hungry.

 

Sarah Flynn

Oregon Food Bank

sflynn@oregonfoodbank.org

Action Alert: Support Child Nutriton Programs and SNAP (food stamps)

(from the Oregon Food Bank)

The Senate has passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act (S. 3307) unanimously. Oregon Food Bank has been working to pass a strong child nutrition package that will improve school meals, summer meal programs and the WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) program. The Senate’s vote was an important step toward our goal.

We applaud Oregon Senators Wyden and Merkley for their support for child nutrition programs. The Senators’ votes in favor of the bill bring us one step closer to passing child nutrition reauthorization in time for the upcoming school year. It is disappointing that the Senate bill is paid for, in part, by cuts to SNAP/food stamp benefits starting in 2013, but we believe that the Senate will have opportunities to restore and further strengthen SNAP/food stamp benefit levels before the 2013 cuts go into effect.

The House of Representatives has not yet passed its even stronger version of child nutrition reauthorization, the Improving Nutrition for America’s Children Act (H.R. 5504).

Please take a moment now to ask your Representative to support, strengthen and pass Chairman Miller’s version of the child nutrition bill (H.R. 5504). Please contact your Senators to thank them for supporting child nutrition programs and to ask them to restore SNAP funding.

Contact Congress Now

Congressional Update 7/7/2010

Congressional Update during the 111th Congress

Inside Washington

• Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) died June 28 at the age of 92. He was the longest-serving senator in history and twice held the position of Senate Majority Leader. 
• Congress is on its Independence Day recess this week, returning to work in Washington July 12.

Bread’s Issues

Tax Credits for Low-Income Working Families

• Congress is still debating what to do about the Dec. 31, 2010, expiration of tax cuts from 2001 and 2003 and of critical tax credits such as the expansions made in 2009 to the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit.
• Spending issues took up most of Congress’ time just before the Independence Day recess and will continue to be a major focus throughout the year.
• Bread President David Beckmann was invited to testify before the President’s Fiscal Commission June 30, where he urged members to protect low-income families, particularly in difficult economic times, as they consider recommendations to balance the federal budget.

Child Nutrition Reauthorization

• The House Education and Labor Committee held a hearing July 2 to build support for child nutrition reauthorization.
• At the hearing, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack mentioned his recent meeting with faith leaders during Bread’s Lobby Day and noted the moral imperative of addressing child hunger. Setting aside his prepared remarks, he said there is “no more important role or responsibility I have than what I’m talking about here today.” He emphasized that tens of millions of children could benefit from the reauthorization and urged Congress to pass a bill this year. 
• The committee has not yet scheduled when to mark up the bill but will do so sometime in July. Please visit www.bread.org for updates.

2011 Budget and Appropriations

• The House Appropriations Committee has begun considering 12 individual appropriations bills for discretionary spending. The Senate Appropriations Committee is likely to take up its appropriations bills once Congress returns to Washington next week.
• The House State/ Foreign Operations subcommittee cut about $4 billion from the president’s proposed budget. Even so, some accounts received modest increases while many others were funded at or slightly below their FY10 levels.
• The House Agriculture subcommittee voted to increase funding for the McGovern-Dole nutrition program by 27 percent over FY10 funding levels. The subcommittee continued to fund the Food for Peace program at its FY10 level.

Global Food Security

• The Global Food Security Trust Fund announced the first disbursement of grants to five countries for a total of $224 million.
• The initial recipient countries are Bangladesh, Haiti, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Togo. The grants focus on raising the productivity of smallholder farmers.

Act Now

• Congress is crafting tax legislation that is critical to low-income working families. Ask your members of Congress to make sure the current Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit levels are made permanent. 
• If Congress fails to preserve the Child Tax Credit at its current level, a full-time working parent receiving the minimum wage will receive only a $320 credit instead of the current $1,800 credit. The difference—$1,480—is a modest amount of money that has a big impact on the lives of families struggling to make ends meet. 
• If the EITC and Child Tax Credit are not continued at current levels, 1.5 million people will fall below the poverty line, including 800,000 children.  

Sen. _____ U.S. Senate Washington, DC 20510	and	Rep. _____ U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515
Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121

Stop Cuts in Food Stamps

Last night, as Senate leaders looked for ways to pay for increases in pending jobs-related legislation, they proposed cutting billions of dollars from SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program—formerly known as food stamp) benefits. We need your urgent help to stop this from happening.

The pending bill—the American Jobs, Closing Tax Loopholes and Preventing Outsourcing Act, (H.R. 4213), also known as the “extenders bill”—would continue extended unemployment insurance and enhanced Medicaid matching funds to the states—important support for vulnerable people.

But it is unacceptable to pay for these benefits by raiding desperately needed SNAP/food stamp dollars. The proposed cut would eliminate a much-needed future boost in SNAP/food stamp benefits that Congress included in the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

This proposed cut—totaling some $9.56 billion—would return millions of families to the same situation where SNAP benefits typically run out in the third week or early in the fourth week of the month. It would increase hunger just when the president’s 2015 deadline to end childhood hunger is approaching, and it would increase obesity by making it even harder for struggling families to purchase healthy food.