WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the largest program under the U.S. House Agriculture Committee’s jurisdiction, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) needs a “top-to-bottom review” to fully understand where the program has been, where it is now and where it’s headed, according to Chair Rep. K. Michael Conaway (R-Texas) in a Feb. 25 hearing before the committee.

“SNAP has grown from a pilot program that served just 500,000 people in 1964 to a program that at its peak during the recession served more than 47 million Americans,” he said. “Being post-recession and post-farm bill reauthorization, we are in the unique position of being able to conduct a proactive review of SNAP, ensuring the program is prepared to address current and future challenges.

“There are also a number of bipartisan reforms enacted in the Agricultural Act of 2014, including new work pilots, which have not been fully implemented. Evaluating those important reforms will be a key part of our review.”

While the economy has changed and other social welfare programs have adjusted to meet changing needs, Conaway said SNAP, formerly called food stamps, appears to not have changed much at all.

“We have seen the overall unemployment rate fall, yet the number of long-term unemployed remains high,” he said. “The lengthy ‘recovery’ following the 2009 recession has brought in a new group of healthy, working-age recipients, who in the past had not used SNAP. This is a new dynamic not previously experienced following other recessions when periods of unemployment were much shorter.”

Conaway said some programs have responded to the changing needs of its target population. One is the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, which has moved increasingly toward more services, such as transportation and child care, compared to cash assistance, in order to better support the needs of working parents.

“We can all agree that no one ought to go hungry in America, and SNAP is essential in protecting the most vulnerable citizens during tough times,” he said. “For many it is a vital lifeline to keeping food on the table. What we don’t want is for this program to hold people back from achieving their potential. I believe there is a role for SNAP, but we need to have a complete and clear understanding of its mission and purpose.”

On Aug. 25, 2014, the USDA announced up to $200 million in competitive grants was available for state SNAP agencies to design and conduct employment and training (E&T) pilot projects to help SNAP participants find jobs and increase their earnings. Last September, the committee reviewed the implementation of Section 4022 of the Agricultural Act of 2014, with pilot projects to reduce dependency and increase work requirements and work effort under SNAP.

In his opening statement at the Sept. 17 hearing, Ag Committee Ranking Member Collin C. Peterson (D-Minn.) said the work pilot projects the bipartisan committee has authorized are to help “put people back to work.”

“The (2014) farm bill invested $200 million to develop and improve innovative approaches to SNAP employment and training,” he explained. “The bill provides the USDA with very clear direction for implementing these pilots and ensures that funding will create sustainable jobs by requiring annual reporting on set performance goals.

“Keeping a close eye on the USDA’s farm bill implementation should be one of this committee’s top priorities.”

On Feb. 26, Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.), chair of the Ag Committee’s Subcommittee on Nutrition, held a public hearing to review the characteristics and dynamics of SNAP recipients.

“It is my hope and expectation that this subcommittee, along with the work done at the full committee, will explore and gain a better understanding of the entire program and specifically its recipients to find unmet needs and areas of overlap,” she said.

“The SNAP program does not function by itself, and many other factors contribute to its ultimate success. That’s why it’s so important that this subcommittee focus our efforts on understanding how SNAP can best serve families and children across the United States.”