Rep. Mike Lawer Remains Silent as Administration Threatens to Withhold New York SNAP Funds
New Yorkers Could See a Disruption in Food Assistance Benefits as Soon as This Week
HUDSON VALLEY, NEW YORK — Last Tuesday, the Agriculture Department announced that it would begin withholding federal funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) from more than 20 Democratic-led states, including New York, that have refused to hand over sensitive personal data of food assistance recipients. Congressman Mike Lawler has remained silent on the issue, refusing to speak out in defense of his more than 66,000 constituents who rely on the benefits to put food on the table.
This is just the latest attack on New Yorkers’ food assistance, just weeks after Rep. Lawler refused to negotiate to end the 43-day-long government shutdown that froze SNAP benefits and forced tens of thousands of Hudson Valley families to do without. Earlier this year, Rep. Lawler voted to implement burdensome new reporting requirements that threaten to kick tens of thousands of Hudson Valley residents off the benefits they rely on.
“Mike Lawler promised to lower costs for people here in the Hudson Valley, but it seems that all he’s willing to do is work with this administration to dismantle the very benefits that help us get by,” said Mary, a SNAP recipient from Peekskill. “I was temporarily forced off my benefits because of the new hurdles he helped put in place, then the entire program shut down during a government shutdown that he was responsible for. Now, the administration is attacking us again, and he’s saying nothing. When is he going to start doing his job? If he actually cares about affordability in the Hudson Valley, he needs to stand up against this attack on New Yorkers.”
Despite his claims to want to protect the program, Rep. Lawler has repeatedly supported efforts to undermine or restrict New Yorkers’ access to SNAP benefits:
SNAP Cuts and Tariffs Threaten Thanksgiving for Thousands of Hudson Valley Families
As SNAP Funding Approaches the November 1st Fiscal Cliff, New Yorkers Brace for Impact
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About Empire State Voices
Empire State Voices (ESV) is a multi-year campaign dedicated to amplifying the voices of everyday working New Yorkers. ESV is fighting for economic policies that make life more affordable for constituents and holding members of Congress across the state accountable when they fail to do the same.
