The cuts in food stamps benefits are part of the larger package of cuts to programs that were started during the COVID pandemic in 2020. Those programs – including expanded unemployment benefits to include the self-employed and gig workers, expanding those who qualify for Medicaid (health insurance for low income individuals and households), and expanded child tax credits – have all be cut or will be in the months ahead.

Total spending on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, the formal name for food stamps, will fall by more than $15 billion this fiscal year, which runs from October 2022 to September 2023. At the same time, military spending, including military aid to Ukraine, will rise by $120 billion, or eight times as much, this fiscal year.

Food costs are up by more than 10% as compared to a year ago, straining working people’s budgets. Most economists expect a recession this year, which would slash the incomes of working people. About 40 million people in the United States are what the federal Government calls “food insecure,” and these cuts will just make the problem worse, especially for children and seniors.

While private charities cannot make up for cuts in SNAP food stamp benefits, this cut comes at a time where private charities are also under stress. The Second Harvest Food Bank that serves San José and distributes free food in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties saw the number of people it served double in 2020 with the pandemic. But even though the pandemic illnesses and unemployment have both come down, the rising cost of rent, gasoline, food, and well, just about everything, has made it harder to keep food on the table. The local food bank is still serving 80% more than in 2019 before the pandemic and will be challenged to help the growing number of people in need.

The United States is the world’s largest exporter of food. The U.S. exports more than twice as much food as the next two largest food exporting countries combined. Yet we cannot manage to feed our own people, while spending more and more on the military and war.

#SanJoséCA #lowincomeFamilies #foodStamps

Leaders of Minnesota’s low-income community are furious.

Linden Gawboy of the Welfare Rights Committee states, “This is an insult to those of us who have been fighting at the capitol for basic survival needs for years. Over 70,000 kids live in extreme poverty. Tens of thousands are basically homeless. The last across-the-board welfare grant increase was in 1986, 29 years ago. Dayton and his legislative cronies have been giving handouts to big business for years, but many of us who have nothing can’t get any cash help at all. We say, ‘Give aid to all in need!’”

The Welfare Rights Committee is organizing a call-in week starting August 3 to urge the governor and legislative leadership to convene a special session on giving money to the poorest of the poor in this state.

For more information: Facebook event at https://www.facebook.com/events/1646316468946540/, or visit WelfareRightsMN.com.

#StPaulMN #PoorPeoplesMovements #Minnesota #lowincomeFamilies #walleyeFishing

St Paul, MN – On April 30, members of the Welfare Rights Committee (WRC) gathered outside the House Chambers of the Minnesota state capitol to protest Governor Mark Dayton’s State of the State address. “It’s been 28 years without a grant increase and Governor Dayton refuses to help children and their families,” said the WRC’s Darnella Wade.

For the State of the State address, the whole legislature, Supreme Court, Secretary of State, Attorney General and former U.S. Vice-president Mondale attend. They all had to pass by the Welfare Rights Committee members holding signs of Governor Dayton’s face that read, “Shame on Dayton for ignoring 70,000 kids in extreme poverty.” They chanted, “70,000 kids! 70,000 kids!” and “The rich got bailed out, we got sold out!”

WRC members also displayed 28 tombstones to represent 28 years without a grant increase for MFIP (the state of Minnesota’s welfare program for poor children and their parents). The tombstones had slogans such as, “R.I.P. 28 years without an increase,” and “Rest in poverty.”

According to the Welfare Rights Committee’s statement: “Over the past decade, hundreds of millions of federal dollars targeted for Minnesota’s welfare have been raided by Minnesota politicians to supplant state spending and pay down the state’s deficits. Because of this theft, only 27% of the federal TANF dollars actually go to the Minnesota families receiving welfare. Meanwhile, MN welfare grants have not seen an increase for 28 years, while the cost of living has more than doubled.

“This year the state had a surplus. The governor and legislators had a chance to raise the welfare grants to help get 70,000 kids out of extreme poverty, but they refused. Instead they gave tax breaks, mostly to corporations and the well-to-do.”

The last to make a ceremonial entrance was Governor Dayton. WRC had a member stationed at the elevator, so he had to walk through the capitol and into the house chamber to the chants of “Dayton, Dayton! Shame on you!”

As the governor started his address, he got loud “boos” from WRC members. Their statement notes, “The governor tried to give a rosy picture of the state, but WRC was there to show that the ‘real state of the state’ is horrible for the poor and working families.”

#StPaulMN #PoorPeoplesMovements #welfare #lowincomeFamilies #GovernorDayton #MinnesotaWelfareRightsCommittee

St. Paul, MN – On Feb. 25, Minnesota politicians returned to the State Capitol for the opening of the legislative session and the Welfare Rights Committee and their supporters were there. Over 50 low-income people joined together, despite below-zero temperatures, to send a message to legislators: “Raise the welfare grants. 28 years is too long!”

Lorretta VanPelt opened the rally, reminding people, “In 1986 a family of two received $437 a month. Now, in 2014, a family still only receives $437 a month, despite the cost of living having more than doubled in the last 28 years.”

Over the previous weekend, Welfare Rights Committee members sewed together bed sheets and painted a very large banner that greeted legislators as they entered and exited the chamber. The banner read, “Raise the welfare grants now! Bring 70,000 MN kids out of extreme poverty!”

This session, the Welfare Rights Committee has a bill in the Minnesota legislature to increase the welfare grants – Senate File 1693/House File 2191.

Cherrene Horazuk, president of AFSCME Local 3800, reminded people how working people and unions need to be involved in fighting for raising the welfare grants: “Welfare is the line below which wages are not supposed to be below. Minimum wage continues to be so low partly because they continue to keep welfare grants small.”

In addition to dropping the large banner from the second story rotunda at the capitol, WRC members and supporters walked around the capitol with the banner chanting, “Hey politicians! We’re at your door! Stop the war on the poor!” and “What do we want? Raise the grants! When do we want it? Now!”

The protesters marched with the banner to Governor Mark Dayton’s office, filling both his inner office and waiting room, as WRC members reminded Dayton it’s time he raised the welfare grants for those most in need and help take 70,000 Minnesota children out of extreme poverty.

#StPaulMN #PoorPeoplesMovements #WelfareRightsCommittee #lowincomeFamilies #workersRights #welfareGrants

Minneapolis, MN – Members of the Twin Cities-based Welfare Rights Committee held signs and banners during rush-hour, Nov. 12, in front of U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar’s office, telling her to undo the November Food Stamp/SNAP cuts, and to stop further cuts to Food Stamps.

Senator Klobuchar sits on the Agriculture conference committee in Washington D.C. that will decide the fate of the Food Stamp (now known as SNAP) program. Both houses of Congress are proposing cuts to this basic survival program. Now, people across the country are reeling from November’s across the board cuts to Food Stamps (the result of an expiration of a part of the federal stimulus program).

According to the Welfare Rights Committee’s Loretta VanPelt, “It seems that when budgets need to be ‘balanced’ it is balanced on the backs of the poor and working class, and we are the ones who have to pay the price for these budgets. We ask that Senator Klobuchar, as a member of the Ag Committee, to use her influence to undo all cuts to food stamps.”

#MinneapolisMN #PoorPeoplesMovements #SenatorAmyKlobuchar #lowincomeFamilies #foodStamps #SNAP

St. Paul, MN – Because of the Welfare Rights Committee’s fierce battle at the State Capitol, the first increase for welfare since 1986 passed and was signed into law by the governor in late May. The Health and Human Services Omnibus bill includes a housing allowance for MFIP families (MFIP is Minnesota’s welfare program for poor families). The Welfare Rights Committee (WRC) won over $40 million dollars (over a 2 year period) that will go directly into the pockets of poor families. Specifically, MFIP families who do not live in subsidized housing will receive an additional $110 dollars a month.

It is a victory in that it turns the tide after 27 years of no grant increase. It is because of the relentless and persistent work of the WRC that this first cash increase passed. Members of the WRC exposed the theft of federal TANF (welfare) dollars and the extreme poverty of MFIP families. Legislative backers of the bill have declared that this is only a start. The message of poor families was heard loud and clear and the WRC will make sure it continues to be heard.

However, the fact that it won’t help a single person for two years is an outrage. While it as an acknowledgement that the cash MFIP grants that poor families get don’t even come close to covering rent, it is cynical in the extreme in that it actively condemns kids to homelessness for another 2 years.

The Welfare Rights Committee has been fighting to increase the grants since last summer. The WRC introduced a bill to double the grants and struggled with legislators until the bitter end to get even a partial increase. One reason for the disappointing two-year wait before the increase takes effect is the cowardly legislative leadership putting election politics before people. Poof families had to continually urge and re-convince legislators to do right thing, after 27 years

“What a family of two lived on in 1986 was $437. What a family of two lives on today in 2013 is $437.00. The time is now!’ said Welfare Rights member Lena Buggs. Poor families have been struggling to pay their rent and bills with the amount of money that they receive in welfare.

“People are going homeless,” states Angel Buechner, member of the Welfare Rights Committee. If the welfare grants had kept up with inflation since 1986 – the year of the last increase – they would be double. The cash grant levels condemns over 70,000 MN children to extreme poverty.

Another barrier to the full success of the bill to double the grants was interference from the ‘poverty industry’ – agencies and other areas of government that use funds meant for poor families for their businesses or their ‘studies.’

The federal money meant for welfare, the TANF block grant, has been raided for years. Only 28% of the TANF fund goes to actual people in need. The WRC’s work caused many legislators – Democrats and Republican – to question this misuse of TANF funds.

As statement from the WRC notes: “It is clear to the WRC and poor families that the legislature and the governor clearly dance to the tune of the rich. They use regressive taxes to give General Fund money to billionaire stadium owners, then turn around and tell homeless kids that there won’t be money to help them for two years.

“We will take this truth to the streets, and continue to demand justice. This is just the beginning. We will keep up the fight to Raise the Welfare Grants until poor families in MN get the justice we deserve!”

The Welfare Rights Committee will hold a protest outside Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton’s mansion July 10. For more info, see http://welfarerightsmn.com/

#StPaulMN #PoorPeoplesMovements #WelfareRightsCommittee #TANF #Capitalism #lowincomeFamilies

St. Paul, MN – People crowded into Governor Mark Dayton’s reception area, August 9, to tell him to “Raise the welfare grants” in the state of Minnesota. Despite harassment by capitol security, the Welfare Rights Committee (WRC) members refused to leave until they felt they were on the path to securing a meeting with the governor himself.

Before the group entered the office, they held a short rally outside. Lena Buggs read the statement from the Welfare Rights Committee, which said, in part, “We are here today, at the office of Governor Dayton, to demand that he take action to raise the welfare grants for low-income families. We insist that he place language in his budget proposal for the 2013 legislative session that would increase public assistance for low income families.”

Angel Buechner led the way into the office bearing an oversize check for $437, the amount of cash that the state allots to a family of two. They left with the governor’s staff. WRC’s Paivey Ballayan presented staff with a large chart showing what a family of two really needs – nearly eight times as much as the grants are now.

Welfare grants in the state of Minnesota have not been increased since 1986 – 26 years ago. If the state’s welfare grants had kept up with inflation, they would be double what they are now, according to the government’s own Consumer Price Index calculator.

The WRC statement concludes:

“We are in the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression, and the need for a public assistance program that keeps families afloat is needed now more than ever. As layoffs continue and unemployment runs out, more and more families are needing welfare.

“We understand that we have a tough fight in front of us. For decades poor-bashing politicians have been balancing the budget on the backs of poor and working people. We have seen one cut after another to the programs and services that we need. Last legislative session we had to face down a politician who was actually comparing low income people to animals. Politicians continue to blame the poor for poverty and we have had enough.

“Over the past 20 years the Welfare Rights Committee has put forward many of the bills and changes in legislation to make things better for low-income Minnesotans. We have organized everything from protests to sit-ins to fight back against attacks on poor and working Minnesotans. We are fed up with the rich in this state getting richer, while poor and working families suffer. We will not remain silent while our families sink deeper into poverty. We demand that Governor Dayton take the lead and take action to raise the welfare grants now!”

#StPaulMN #PoorPeoplesMovements #WelfareRightsCommittee #GovernorMarkDayton #lowincomeFamilies