Disability Activist Alert
Tell the USDA: Don’t Cut Off Our Food Assistance!
Action needed by Monday, April 9, 2018
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is collecting comments on whether it should make changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that will lead to people losing food and nutrition assistance.
Roughly 1 in 4 non-elderly SNAP beneficiaries, or 11 million people, have a disability. It’s vital that SNAP be there for people with disabilities and their families when they need it.
Instead, USDA is exploring proposals that would cut off some people’s SNAP food assistance. Ideas include making more people subject to harsh, arbitrary 3-month time limits on receipt of SNAP and difficult reporting requirements. The changes USDA is looking at would punish people who lose their jobs and can’t find a new one or can’t meet the potential new strict work or training requirements. Many people with disabilities and chronic health conditions, and their families, would be hurt.
- Submit comments to USDA to protect access to food assistance under SNAP, including for people with disabilities.
- Comments must be submitted by April 9, 2018 at:
Sample activist comments:
I oppose any action by USDA to make stricter time limits in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Already, SNAP time limit rules are very harsh. USDA should not make this worse by taking away state flexibility or exposing more people to time limits. The proposed changes discussed in this Notice would lead to many people with disabilities and chronic health conditions losing needed help in putting food on the table for themselves and their families. People with disabilities are already at least twice as likely to be unable to afford to meet their nutritional needs than people without disabilities. I urge you not to change the SNAP rules in any ways that make it more likely that workers and jobseekers – including people with disabilities – will go hungry because they can no longer receive SNAP. The only action that I urge USDA to take with respect to SNAP time limits is to propose their elimination. Thank you.
Meg Cooch
Executive Director
The Arc of Illinois
20901 S. LaGrange Rd. Suite 209
Frankfort, IL 60423
815-464-1832 (OFFICE)
Meg@thearcofil.org