With the current Farm Bill due to expire September 30th, negotiations are heating up and your voice is more important than ever! After the Senate and House each passed their respective Farm Bills earlier this year, leadership from the House and Senate Agriculture Committees are working with a conference committee to draft a final bill that can pass in both chambers.

Thanks to the work of advocates from across the country, the Senate’s version of the Farm Bill passed with strong, bipartisan support and includes provisions to strengthen and protect SNAP, one of our country’s most effective anti-poverty programs. It stands in stark contrast to the harsh and partisan House bill that would cut SNAP by nearly $19 billion, take away food assistance from 2 million people in need, and make SNAP more burdensome and costly to administer.

SNAP helps more than 120,000 Montanans keep food on the table, including 1 in 5 Montana children, helping to improve health outcomes and increase educational attainment. In addition, SNAP provides stability for 1 in 12 Montana workers, filling the gap when incomes fall short. Strengthening SNAP, not cutting it, is the right way forward.

Montana’s families, farmers, and rural communities are counting on Congress to pass a strong, bipartisan Farm Bill that protects SNAP. The Senate Farm Bill meets these criteria. We urge Senators Daines and Tester, Representative Gianforte, and all Congressional leaders to ensure that the final Farm Bill does the same.

For more information on each version of the Farm Bill, please see our previous statements on the Senate bill and the House bill.

TAKE ACTION!

1. Urge Senators Daines and Tester and Rep. Gianforte to Protect SNAP in Final Farm Bill!

Senator Steve Daines:
Email: https://www.daines.senate.gov/connect/email-steve
Call: (202) 224-2651

Senator Jon Tester:
Email: https://www.tester.senate.gov/contact/
Call: (202) 224-2644

Representative Greg Gianforte:
Email: https://gianforte.house.gov/contact
Call: (202) 225-5687

 Sample Call/Email Message:

My name is [first name, last name] and I live in [city/town], Montana. I’m [calling or writing] to ask [Senator Tester, Senator Daines, or Representative Gianforte] to support a final Farm Bill that protects and strengthens SNAP, one of our country’s most powerful and effective poverty-reduction programs. SNAP helps more than 120,000 Montanans keep food on the table, including 1 in 5 Montana kids and 1 in 12 workers. The final bill should reflect the Senate’s SNAP provisions with no harmful changes. Montana deserves a strong Farm Bill that supports our farmers, rural communities, and families struggling to make ends meet – and that means a Farm Bill that protects SNAP.

 2. RSVP for National Call-in Day, September 13th

Mark your calendar, set your reminder now. Take just 5 minutes of your day on Thursday, September 13 to urge our Members of Congress to Protect SNAP in Final Farm Bill!

Click here to join our Facebook event for important reminders, updates, and more!