GOVERNOR
PATRICK ANNOUNCES STEPS TO PRESERVE SNAP BENEFITS FOR 163,000 MASSACHUSETTS
HOUSEHOLDS
Cross Agency Initiative Will Restore SNAP Cuts
Included in Federal Farm Bill
BOSTON – Tuesday, March 18, 2014 – Governor Deval Patrick today
announced steps to preserve Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP)
benefits for approximately 163,000 households in Massachusetts and avoid the
loss of approximately $142 million in SNAP benefits set to be cut under the
recently enacted federal Farm Bill.
"Government's role is to help people help themselves, and
these steps are necessary to help our most vulnerable residents and families
meet their most basic needs," said Governor Patrick.
Under the plan, the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA)
will partner with the Department of Housing and Community Development
(DHCD) to provide at least $20 in heating assistance to eligible families
through the H-EAT program, which makes them eligible for an increase of $80 in
monthly SNAP benefits to help families pay for food. DHCD will invest
approximately $3 million to support the continuation of the program and
leverage the additional SNAP benefits for these families.
The investment will also help maintain economic stability for
families and businesses in Massachusetts, as each SNAP dollar spent generates
approximately $2 in economic activity for the state, according to the USDA.
“Reversing the cuts from the Farm Bill is a major step in
helping Massachusetts families work toward economic stability,” said Secretary
of Health and Human Services John Polanowicz. “Any cut in benefit, no matter the size, has a real
impact on low-income families, and this funding supports a program that makes a
difference every day.”
“This program continues to be a valuable resource for residents
across the Commonwealth,” said Aaron Gornstein, Undersecretary of the
Department of Housing and Community Development. “As the Administrator of the
LIHEAP program, DHCD is pleased to join our sister agency in preventing cuts to
the food stamp benefits that our neediest families have been receiving.
The heating assistance, known as the Low-Income Home Energy
Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, is federal assistance provided to the state to
help low-income families defray heating costs.
"I'm
so proud of Governor Patrick and his Administration for stepping up and
providing these resources to help some of our most vulnerable neighbors,"
said Congressman Jim McGovern. "Despite what Speaker Boehner said last
week (ironically, on the same day he invited Pope Francis to address a joint
session of Congress), this effort is not 'fraud' or 'cheating' -- it's an
effort by states like Massachusetts to provide food to hungry families."
The
Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (formerly Food Stamps) is a fully
federally-funded food benefit program administered by the Massachusetts
Department of Transitional Assistance on behalf of the United States Department
of Agriculture. The Department helps nearly one in seven residents throughout
the Commonwealth meet their most basic needs.
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