Proposed Rule: Revision of Categorical Eligibility in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

Thank you for the opportunity to comment in opposition to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Proposed Rule on Revision of Categorical Eligibility in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP.)

We write as social welfare scholars who are members of the Maine Chapter of the Scholars Strategy Network’s Working Group on Social Policy and the Safety Net. We draw upon scholarly research to inform ongoing public debates about issues of state and national importance, among them health care, workforce development and employment, child and family welfare, income support, hunger and nutrition, and poverty and social assistance. Our intent here is to focus on SNAP: its importance in providing food assistance to millions of American families, the detrimental effects of hunger on individuals and on the state, and the critical importance of safety net programs like SNAP in helping individuals and families to move out of poverty toward autonomy.