Attorney General TJ Donovan called on Vermonters Wednesday to tell the federal government that they disagree with its plan to remove 3 million Americans from being eligible for food stamps.
The Trump administration says the rule change will stop people from taking advantage of loopholes. Donovan, however, says the effort will result in food being taken away from people who badly need it.
Donovan and other state officials are asking Vermonters to go to www.hungerfreevt.org/protect3squaresvt to submit comments to the federal government before the legally mandated public comment period ends on Sept. 23.
He said the rule change will take away $7.5 million in food benefits that Vermonters rely on, and that the public comment period is the first way that people should be letting the Trump administration know they disagree.
“In Vermont, we have success in defeating a proposed rule,” Donovan said. “We can do this.”
In 2018, more than 3,000 Vermonters submitted comments, largely in opposition to a rule change that would have required Vermont maple syrup to be packaged with an “added sugar” label. After reviewing the comments, the FDA nixed the proposed change.
John Sayles, CEO of the Vermont Foodbank, said most of the potentially affected people are unaware of the changes and won’t until it goes into effect, leaving them unable to put food on their table or have their kids get free lunch at school.
“These people are working so hard to make every moment count in their day, they’re not paying attention to this news conference, and they’re not paying attention to what’s happening in Washington,” Sayles said. “They’re going to get that letter and be knocked back.”
He said the state has 215 food sites that are already overwhelmed by need. He said the move by the Trump administration would be akin to taking food from the hungry, calling it “gratuitous cruelty.”
“The charitable sector — Vermonters who are donating their hard earned money to organizations like the food bank and Hunger Free Vermont, making a big difference — cannot make up the difference,” he said.
Sen. Debbie Ingram, D-Chittenden, said she’s aware of people who would lose benefits, and who are not taking advantage of the system. She gave examples of a 27-year-old single mom with an infant daughter making $27,000 a year, a 62-year-old and her 59-year-old partner making $19,000 a year with just $5,000 in savings, and a 71-year-old making $30,000 a year who has custody of her 10-year-old grandson — all of whom would lose their benefits under the proposal.
“Are these the people the federal government says are exploiting loopholes in the current system?” Ingram asked. “I don’t think so. I think this is cruel and unusual punishment for those living in poverty.”
Anore Horton, the executive director of Hunger Free Vermont, said her agency can say with absolute certainty that the degree of fraud in the SNAP program is miniscule, noting that it has the lowest fraud rating of any federal program.
Sayles added his agency is more worried innocent people might have their benefits cut than that a few might be gaming the system.
“We should really be thinking about ‘what’s the impact of all the people that still need it that aren’t eligible into these programs,’” Sayles said.
Donovan said if necessary, litigation against the federal government could be considered, though for now, he said, it’s still too early. Instead, he encouraged people to make use of the comment period while they still can.
“This one is about our kids,” Donovan said. “Let’s speak up.”
