Statement of Administration Policy: S. 2560 - Hunger Prevention Act of 1988

(Revised)

(Senate)
(Leahy (D) VT)

The Administration opposes S. 2560 on budgetary and programmatic grounds and, if presented to the President, the Secretary of Agriculture and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget would recommend that he veto the bill.

The enactment of S. 2560 could be a contributing factor in triggering a Gramm-Rudman-Hollings sequestration order, since the Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that the bill would cost $388 million in FY 1989. Spending in the outyears would increase dramatically, to an estimated $634 million in FY 1990 and $667 million in FY 1991, which is contrary to the need to control future Federal deficits.

S. 2560 also contains various undesirable and unwise program amendments, the most objectionable of which would:

—    abandon the Thrifty Food Plan as the basis of Food Stamp program benefits, resulting in increased cost without improving nutritional intake;

—    mandate changes in the Food Stamp Employment and Training program that would result in fewer recipients receiving services and redirection of the program's emphasis away from proven cost-effective services;

—    liberalize the household definition in the Food Stamp program in a way that would invite fraud and abuse;

—    inappropriately require USDA to purchase $145 million worth of high protein commodities on the open market in each of FY's 1989 and 1990 for the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance program;

—    increase school breakfast reimbursement rates further above breakfast costs; and

—    expand upper and middle income Child Care Food program meal subsidies.