DENVER (KDVR) — Senator Michael Bennet announced a plan on Tuesday that would expand the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
“As the COVID-19 crisis has so clearly brought to light, we are doing too little to provide a basic safety net for the millions of struggling families across the country,” Bennet said.
“My plan expands food assistance and eliminates barriers to accessing that necessary assistance when the economy is deteriorating like it is today, and increases access permanently across the nation.”
Bennet’s SNAP reform proposal includes:
- Increasing the maximum SNAP benefit by 15%
- Providing additional funding for the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
- Eliminating work requirements during recessions, including through the end of the COVID-19 public health crisis and thereafter, until the unemployment rate declines near to where it was before the crisis began
- Ensuring the use of broad-based categorical eligibility so that more vulnerable families can access SNAP benefits, even outside of a crisis.