Senators Sanders and Warren voted to cut Food Stamps. Why?

[okaawhatever]

25. Did anyone bother reading the articles? Here's the money shot:

Lawmakers say the compromise would not force anyone off the food stamp rolls. The budget savings, said Senator Debbie Stabenow, Democrat of Michigan and chairwoman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, would come from changes to the way states administer a federal program that helps low-income families with their heating bills.

Under that program, known as Heat and Eat, the District of Columbia and 15 states, including New York and California, allow people who receive heating assistance subsidies to deduct their utility costs from their incomes, allowing them to claim more food stamp benefits.

Critics of the program say that in many cases states exploit a loophole in the law and help families increase the amount of their benefits by giving them a heating subsidy as little as $1, solely to make them eligible for more food stamps. By barring states from doing so, some families will received less in food stamps, and Congress expects that will reduce the program’s costs by $9 billion over the 10 years.

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So basically, 15 states calculate their food stamp program differently from the others. This evens the playing field. I'll bet the Democratic senators who voted no are from states where they calculate it differently.

I do think consideration needs to be given to adjust for areas where cost of living is significantly different. A family of 4 who makes 20k per year has much more money for food if their heat bill is 100 per month vs. 500 per month. That being said, the way it is calculated needs to be consistent across the board. I noticed that California calculates it differently if the person is on heating assistance. I can't imagine that would be much of a change since their heating bills aren't much compared to colder states. New York of course, will feel the pinch much more so.