Senate Scheduled To Hold Procedural Vote At 5:30 This Afternoon

WASHINGTON, DC—Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) released the following statement today urging the Senate not to move forward with the Farm Bill. The Senate is scheduled to take a procedural vote on the legislation, which passed the House of Representatives last week, at 5:30 this afternoon. DeLauro is a former chairwoman of the subcommittee responsible for funding the United States Department of Agriculture.

“Three months after cutting $11 billion from food stamps, our nation’s most important anti-hunger program, supporters of this Farm Bill are trying to cut another $8.6 billion. Yet, they have gone out of their way to reopen loopholes that benefit millionaires and billionaires. The result: winners and losers.

“The winners are wealthy farmers and agri-businesses who will be able to pocket subsidies and handouts beyond the already-generous limits. They will receive more taxpayer-subsidized crop insurance. And they will take advantage of a loophole that allows farming enterprises to over-collect on commodity payments.  There is no limit on the number of people working for a given entity who can receive these payments. This means that, for example, eight people at one establishment can collect $125,000 payments each, leading to a $1 million taxpayer subsidy for a single farm.

“The losers are the 850,000 low-income households all over America, 1.7 million Americans, who will lose 66 meals a month with this cut to food stamps, on the heels of the November cut. Children will go to bed hungry and spend the next day at school unable to concentrate. Veterans and working families will face an empty fridge and a gnawing pain. Seniors will have to choose between food and warmth. These are our own, hard-working people we are consigning to this fate.  

“Anyone who votes for this bill will have to look those people in the eye and tell them to go without food. I urge the Senate: do not move forward with this bill.”