Trump's administration tightens rules for food stamps
The administration of US President Donald Trump wants to push food stamp recipients (SNAP) to look for work.
The US Department of Agriculture on Thursday proposed a new rule that would limit the ability of state governments to relieve working adults from having to have a regular job to get food stamps, writes CBS.
Critics call the innovation “draconian”, noting that it will complicate life for people who are barely making ends meet. Proponents of the changes are confident that they will help ticket recipients find work through special vocational training programs, which will allow them to refuse to receive coupons in the future.
Currently, local state governments may waive the requirement for recipients of food stamps if the unemployment rate in the region is 20% higher than the national average, which is currently 3,7%.
Trump's proposal will make it impossible for states to refuse this requirement if the unemployment rate in a city or county does not exceed 7%. Currently, in no state the unemployment rate exceeds 7%, the highest unemployment rate among all US regions in Alaska, and it is 6,4%.
“As a result of the proposed changes, hundreds of thousands of unemployed SNAP participants could lose the assistance that keeps them fed,” Ed Bolen, senior policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, wrote in a blog post.
At the same time, the head of the Department of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue, said that the new requirements “will help move people from a state of dependence on the state to self-sufficiency.”
Currently, able-bodied adults aged from 18 to 49 years without children are required to work at least 20 hours per week to maintain their SNAP benefits.
Able-bodied adults with no dependents can currently only receive three months of SNAP benefits for a three-year period if they do not work from 20 hours per week. But states with an unemployment rate of 20% above the US average or with an apparent lack of enough jobs can lift these restrictions.
If the state or county meets the new 7% unemployment threshold, the US Department of Agriculture will grant them the right to be exempt from the job requirement for recipients of food stamps for one year, the governor must send a request for this.
According to the head of the Department of Agriculture, these regulatory changes will save 15 taxpayers billions of dollars over 10 years.
Read also on ForumDaily:
How to live in America for the minimum wage
Where to go for help if you live hard in the US
How in America to get free food
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