Skip to main content
Statement

MomsRising Leaders Commend Congress for Passing Farm Bill that Protects, Instead of Punishes, Families at Risk for Hunger

December 12, 2018
Youth & Family Justice, Federal Budget

Lisa Lederer, 202-371-1996

Statement from leaders of MomsRising, an online and on-the-ground organization of more than one million mothers and their families, on Congress passing the Farm Bill this afternoon:

“We commend both the U.S. Senate and House for passing a bipartisan Farm Bill that protects, instead of punishes, families at risk for hunger. In the end, Congress did the right thing for our families and our economy by including a Nutrition Title that protects SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and supports the moms and families that rely on it. SNAP is one of the strongest tools we have, as a nation, for combating poverty and hunger. Any attempts to create barriers to access or chip away at its funding would only harm our children and our economy. To that end, we strongly urge the Trump administration not to try to do through regulation what Congress has explicitly rejected – adopt punitive measures like unnecessary additional work requirements that would effectively deny children and families the food they need.”

-- Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director and CEO, MomsRising 

“MomsRising members were ‘all in’ with the fight to protect the food and nutritional support that families need when times are hard. Our members shared personal stories, wrote letters to the editor, phoned and emailed their representative and senators, visited with them in-person in their state or district offices – and some even traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with them personally. The moms of America know how important programs like SNAP are to the well-being of families and they used their voices to speak out loudly against harmful measures that would lead to hungrier children and families.

“We are proud of the role MomsRising members played in protecting the SNAP program and, as a result, millions of people who would otherwise go hungry will be able to put food on the table. The bill Congress passed today stands in sharp contrast to the misguided, irresponsible Farm Bill the House of Representatives passed this spring, which would have exacerbated hunger in America through unnecessary, harmful and overly restrictive work requirements. In contrast, this bill is an investment in our future and it will boost struggling families. This is the type of policy we hope to continue to see as we head into 2019.”

-- Elyssa Koidin Schmier, Senior Campaign Director, National Early Learning and Budget, MomsRising

# # # #

MomsRising.org is an on-the-ground and online grassroots organization of more than a million people who are working to increase family economic security, decrease discrimination against women and moms, and to build a nation where businesses and families can thrive. Established in 2006, MomsRising and its members are organizing and speaking out to improve public policy and to change the national dialogue on issues that are critically important to America’s families, including criminal justice reform, immigration policy reform, and gun safety. MomsRising is working for paid family and medical leave, affordable, high quality childcare and early learning, and for an end to the wage and hiring discrimination which penalizes women — particularly moms and women of color — and so many others. MomsRising advocates for access to healthy food for all kids, health care for all, earned sick days, and breastfeeding rights so that all children can have a healthy start. MomsRising maintains a Spanish language website: MamásConPoder.org. Sign up online at www.MomsRising.org — and follow us on our blog, and on Twitter and Facebook.