Thanksgiving TAKE ACTION: Urge Congressional and State Leaders to Stand With Families Facing Hunger

As we gather with our families and communities to celebrate Thanksgiving this November – we must remember that many around the country are struggling to put food on their tables.

Hunger is a policy choice. The budget reconciliation bill President Trump signed into law on July 4 includes the largest cut to food assistance in history. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill has cut $187 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), leaving more than 2.4 million Americans without desperately needed food assistance. An Urban Institute analysis found over 22 million U.S. families stand to lose at least some SNAP benefits. The government shutdown is now over, but it exposed the willingness of the current administration to cut millions of people off from life-saving SNAP support.

Targeting Refugees: One provision in the reconciliation legislation (H.R. 1, or the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”) goes out of its way to target vulnerable newcomers. The bill completely excludes otherwise-eligible refugees and humanitarian entrants from eligibility for SNAP. To go even further, on October 31, the USDA issued confusing and concerning guidance on these new SNAP eligibility restrictions that – without clarification – may lead to states unlawfully cutting off significantly more refugees, asylees, and Afghan Special Immigrant Visas than the law demands.

Forced to re-apply: On November 13, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said that all SNAP beneficiaries will need to reapply for the program, citing alleged fraud. Fraudulent SNAP applicants are extremely rare, and a reapplication process like this could disproportionately harm those who are most at risk. Guidance on the process is due in early December.

Urgent action is needed: SNAP currently provides basic food assistance to more than 40 million Americans, including 16 million children, 8 million seniors, and 4 million adults with disabilities. The sweeping restrictions that are set to go into effect will impact everyone who relies on SNAP, restricting eligibility, reducing benefits, and increasing the burden on states that already struggle to operate an underfunded program.

Our federal, state, and local elected leaders have the power to stand up for those who rely on lifesaving food assistance. Below, sign up to contact your elected leaders and urge them to repeal the harmful provisions in H.R.1, support refugees and newcomers unlawfully cut off from assistance, and stand with millions of families facing hunger. Find social media guidance and additional resources at the bottom of the page.

CONTACT YOUR ELECTED LEADERS

Sample Email to Congress:

My name is [NAME], and as your constituent from [STATE/DISTRICT], I urge your office to respond to recent attacks on federal food assistance, including by reversing the devastating Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) cuts that passed as part of H.R. 1. Any hunger is an affront to justice, and it is imperative that all of us have what we need to thrive. Specifically, I urge you to:

Support and endorse legislation like the Restoring Food Security for American Families and Farmers Act, which would reverse the harmful cuts to SNAP and food assistance and ensure millions of Americans – including those in [STATE] – continue to be able to put food on the table.
Urge leadership not to move forward with a Farm Bill until the SNAP cuts are fully addressed, including for refugees and humanitarian entrants who have been suddenly cut off. The sweeping SNAP cuts in H.R. 1 will impact millions of American families, inflicting particular harm to children, older adults, people with disabilities and working families. There is a provision that specifically targets and excludes arriving refugees and other humanitarian entrants with lawful status – populations we have pledged to protect and support as they get on their feet and build lives in safety.
Hold the administration accountable for properly applying the law and not unlawfully cutting eligible families off. Demand clarity on October 31 guidance relating to eligibility for refugees. Take additional steps to guarantee that essential nutrition assistance continues without disruption even during a government shutdown, including by ensuring annual funding bills replenish SNAP contingency funds from the prior year.

The restrictions, funding cuts, and administrative changes to SNAP will reduce benefits, dramatically shift costs to states, and leave so many around the country without enough food to put on the table. The changes have already begun to go into effect, and this Thanksgiving we will see the full impact of these lifelines being cut off to many of those in our communities who need them most.

I urge you to act with urgency and compassion to use every legislative and oversight opportunity available to restore SNAP funding and eligibility and redress in full the cuts made by the recently-passed budget reconciliation law.

My community is already deeply impacted by these restrictions, and I hope you will stand with us and take action.

Thank you,
[NAME}

Sample Email to State and Local Elected Leaders:

My name is [NAME] and as a constituent of [ELECTED LEADER] from [CITY, STATE], I am writing to express concern about impending cuts to federal food assistance for refugees and other newcomers in my community.

I am particularly concerned by reports that some states are wrongfully cutting off some vulnerable refugee populations via an overly broad interpretation of the recently passed budget reconciliation bill. I urge you to take action by:

Ensuring [STATE] is not wrongfully cutting off refugees, asylees, Afghan SIVs and other at-risk permanent residents from vital food assistance as a result of H.R. 1. See additional legal analysis: https://tinyurl.com/NILCPIFGuidanceFNS
Creating and fund state-run programs that can fill the gap for refugees and others who are newly cut off from SNAP benefits. These can include parallel state food assistance programs and efforts to help newcomers adjust to statuses on which they will be eligible for assistance.
Investing in programs and partnerships with food banks, ethnic and community based organizations, educational institutions, businesses, faith-based organizations, and refugee and immigrant service providers working to prevent communities from going hungry.

State governments are uniquely positioned to invest in programs and partnerships that prevent communities from going hungry. Many states are considering proactive steps – including via budget negotiations and state-funded SNAP programs – to fill in the gaps left by federal food assistance cuts for many of their most at-risk residents.

In [STATE], we have a moral and legal responsibility to avoid falsely denying benefits to individuals who still qualify for food assistance and to proactively mitigate harm as families and communities who were previously eligible for SNAP lose access to life-sustaining support.

My community welcomes refugees. We must not let them be wrongfully cut off from basic assistance.

Thank you,
[NAME]

AMPLIFY ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Share this message with your elected officials on social media. See below for sample posts:

@[legislator]: Hunger is an affront to justice – it’s also a policy choice. I urge you to act immediately to address the impact of H.R. 1’s cuts to SNAP that will leave millions without needed food assistance.
@[legislator]: Everyone must have enough food to thrive. Pass the Restoring Food Security for American Families and Farmers Act
@[legislator]: We must heed God’s call to share our bread with the hungry. I urge you not to allow the Farm Bill to move forward until the devastating cuts to food assistance are addressed.

Additional Resources: