Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HCR35 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R945 KSM-F
2	2	By: Metcalf H.C.R. No. 35
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5	5	CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
6	6	WHEREAS, The United States Congress established the
7	7	Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program with the expressed goals
8	8	of alleviating hunger and malnutrition and safeguarding the health
9	9	and well-being of members of low-income households; and
10	10	WHEREAS, Food stamp benefits are administered in Texas
11	11	through the Lone Star Card; and
12	12	WHEREAS, During fiscal year 2015, the Texas Health and Human
13	13	Services Commission recorded a monthly average of 3.78 million
14	14	recipients for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; and
15	15	WHEREAS, Total benefits awarded through the Supplemental
16	16	Nutrition Assistance Program in Texas were worth $5.2 billion
17	17	during fiscal year 2015; and
18	18	WHEREAS, Section 3(k) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008,
19	19	which authorized the program and changed the name of the benefits
20	20	from food stamps, defines "food" in broad and expansive terms, and
21	21	as a result, SNAP participants are able to purchase nutritionally
22	22	deficient food items as well as unnecessarily expensive or
23	23	luxurious products; the allowance of these expenditures directly
24	24	contradicts the program's mission; and
25	25	WHEREAS, Each year, public funding goes to cover SNAP
26	26	purchases of soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages that the U.S.
27	27	Department of Agriculture has labeled as having "minimal
28	28	nutritional value," and SNAP participants can use their benefits to
29	29	buy candy, cookies, ice cream, chips, and other items that are high
30	30	in fat or sugar but very low in nutrients; such beverages and snacks
31	31	contribute to obesity, cause increased rates of diabetes and other
32	32	chronic diseases, and lead to higher medical costs; with millions
33	33	of SNAP participants also enrolled in Medicaid, these health issues
34	34	further contribute to growing costs for the federal government; and
35	35	WHEREAS, Today, 45.8 million Americans participate in SNAP,
36	36	and the program costs about $70 billion annually; many citizens are
37	37	becoming increasingly concerned that their tax dollars are being
38	38	subjected to inefficient and wasteful spending; and
39	39	WHEREAS, With the large number of families dependent on SNAP,
40	40	it is imperative that the program support good nutrition, rather
41	41	than subsidize the purchase of products that negatively affect
42	42	public health; now, therefore, be it
43	43	RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas
44	44	hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to amend
45	45	the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to limit the types of food items
46	46	eligible for purchase under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
47	47	Program; and, be it further
48	48	RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
49	49	copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
50	50	the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
51	51	Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the
52	52	members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that
53	53	this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a
54	54	memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.