>> to give an opening statement barco every child deserves a chance to grow up healthy. children should not have to worry about where the next meal will come fromo. that's an unimaginable burden for a young person to deprive them of their childhood. food insecuritypr hurts children's academic outcomes and their ability to pay attention and their behavior it has long-term impacts of physical and mental health and even lifetime earnings. as doctor king said in 1964 there is nothing new about poverty. what is new is that we have the resources now to get rid of it for go that same year , 1964 america enacted the precursor to the supplemental nutritional assistance program known as snap perk america still has the resources to address poverty to lift up the most vulnerable to achieve the american dream. snap is one of our best tools for doing that. it provides moderate assistance to feed americans in need on average only $1.43 per meal for participants in 70 percent of households receiving snap benefits have children. it doesn't just help the children and the elderly and the disabled making of two thirds of the participants, it also boost the economy more than any other government program. according to moody's, every dollar snap benefits increases gdp by $1.73. every one dollar snap benefits increases the national economy by $1.73. it is an incredible return on investment and snap creates job according to the usda every $10000 of snapap benefits has one full-time world job in approximately every $25000 of benefits creates one full-time urban job. snapsn dollars are spent on food necessities flowing into local businesses supporting trucking and farm jobs among others. this is designed to feed children and elderly and disabled also boost our economy to create jobs for brazos committee is responsible for combating wasteom r, fraud and abuse it is worth noting snap related fraud is almost nonexistent. it gives states flexibility to tailor the program to their citizens needs. first it incentivizes work to allow states to ease income eligibility limit so somebody doesn't have to turn down work to maintain eligibility to get back on their feet. second it allows citizens to own a car to save for an emergency like surprise medical bills theur administration currently through their proposal to change snap once to disarm these tools but in doing so it willll strip eight.1 million households of their snap benefits including more than 2 million household with children. but also strips free lunch enrollment from nearly 1 million kids and for those children the policy would take food out of their mouths at home and at school how do we expect them to succeed? the administration needs to abandon the i proposal and the late elisha cummings would have said we are better than this. we know what a difference snap makes for families and children who would otherwise go hungry perk i know from personal experience perk i came to the united states from india with my parents at three months old so my father could pursue his education and our family could embrace the opportunities america has to offer despite my parents best efforts it was not easy. when we needed help we could receive food stamps as my parents worked their way out of a difficult time. today my father is an engineering professor of 40 years still teaching at bradley university in peoria. my brother is a doctor and i'm a congressman. that was myy family stream and it was possible because of my parents hard work but also because of the opportunities our country presents and the generosity and goodwill of the american people. and american president once told congress hunger in a land such as ours is embarrassing and intolerable that was richard nixon berger president nixon and doctor king could agree on the importance of fighting hunger all those decades ago shirley we can find common ground today to continue congresses strong support for snap. now i recognize the chairwoman for her opening statements. >> thank you so much and thank you all for coming today progress chairwoman on oversight reform i want to thank the chairman for neconomic consumer policy to convene this important hearing also thank him for sharing his personal story how important this program is and we need to protect our food for our families and many that are struggling. i think he really show the importance of this incredible program. this hearing will examine the proposed rollbacks of the categorical eligibility for snap for go one of the most important programs the federal government has. this is the third in a series of four hearings we are having a speaking examining thear negative effects of the trump administration's policies on housing and hunger and health regulations for children. these are about the administration's attack on children. congress should be protecting children from the administration's harmful regulations and ensuring that our children have the resources they need to reach their full potential. one out of six children in this country is already food insecure meaning they lack reliable access to food. according to the us department of agriculture's own estimate estimates, if this proposal is enacted 680,000 households of children would lose the food benefits and nearly 1 million children would likely lose direct enrollment for free school meals. the administration's effort to rollback broad-based eligibility for snap will increase food insecurity for children across this country oud any effort to modify snap should not make kids hungry especially here in america. i yelled back and i thank you chairwoman and your leadership on this issue. i appreciate it thank you for your leadership and all of these hearings are so important and it shows the uniformity of attack on children looking at food and rolling back the poverty standard, loosening controls on conditions into the environmen environment, they are all damaging to children. i think we should put in bills to put them all back to make it law in the country. >> thank you chairwoman. >> mr. cloud will present his opening statement following the witnesses. let me first introduce miss davis, senior vice president for the no kid hungry campaign for go thank you so much principal jespersen elementary school in cheboygan and wisconsin. thank you so much and diane sullivan. and advocate with the organization witnesses to hunger. next at teacher at oakville high school in fayetteville. thank you and of course thank you for comping a policy director for the pal foundation for gal. please rise and raise your right hand i will begin by swearing you in. do you swear or affirm the testimony are about to give is the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth so help you god? let the record show that the witnesses answered in the affirmative, thank you and you may be seated. the microphones are sensitive please speak directly into them green means go. red means stop. and yellow unlike with stoplights here it means speed up. d[laughter] you now recognize for five minutes. good morning and thank you for the opportunity to share concerns about the administration's proposed rule to that broad-based categorical eligibility i'm president of the no kid hungry campaign ending poverty and hunger we do have a particular focus on children here in the uniteded states. i am here today to talk about two things. first to provide a brief overviewil and why it is so important for families, and second how the rule working for families and seniors and individuals with disabilities. first it is an effective practical policy many families slightly above 130 percent of poverty that still have difficulty making ends m meet because of high cost of things like housing andre childcare and medical benefits be vce allows these children to remain eligible for snap and free school meals reduces administrative burdens on's agencies are most importantly it encourages work to help low income families move out of poverty to build financial security allows them to accumulate modest assets and to help ensure their children can receive the nutrition that they need at home and at school. what it is not as an automatic pathway to snap benefits through the regular process that has rigorous procedures for documenting income and a circumstances they can be categorically eligible and not receive the benefit because the netet income is high. let me give you an example. assume a mother for two children who is $12.50 an hour could receive $161 in snap per month without ever wages increased by just 50 cents an hour or income would exceed 50 percent of poverty and her family would lose snap that extra $75 per month you were in resources she would actually could not accept a marginal raise so to let the family earns increase so it is the robust body of research that snap is the most effective nutrition program for children with the food insecurity and poverty and without long-term outcome and lifetime earnings provides a return on investment with a corporate ceo and make no mistake the restrict is a harsh step backward to fight childhood hunger if the administration proposed rule becomes law 1 million people or will lose the snap benefits entirely and 982,000 children will lose the automatic certification for preschool meals even many of them will remain eligible for free or reduced price meals that far too many will fall through the cracks confusion about eligibility human error and stigma create a barrier to enrollment on even lower cost is a heaven burden of families saving every dime to cover basics like rent and utilities and gas. so what happens when children miss school meals and exacerbates all of the other problems children face in addition to academic performance the mental and physical health and the opportunity toth achieve full potential. food is one of the most important school supplies children have. i work with families of food insecurity moms and dads working in their lives and their children holding multiple jobs cutting expenses to the bone but yet find it impossible to stretch their paycheck to make ends meet like the car repair or the medical bill to set them back months or years i would like to leave you with one final thought categorical eligibility is working to help low income families work and build savings and insurer they need to grow and thrive and reach their full t potential this is that we can all agree on. thank you. >> thank you. >> it is 10:00 a.m. monday morning sitting in your third grade classroom the cro teacher introduces a reading lesson for the day on how consonant blends work together to make sounds to decode words in your reading working together with a partner to identify words with the same pattern you think everyone can focus on the task but you cannot it's been approximately 65 hours situate a substantial meal on friday at lunch at school if tryou start to feel anxious and frustrated all you can think about is the lunch. that will not begin for another two hours the teacher notices you are not paying attention and asked you to focus on the partner project so you have to understand tnd ts and you think this is not as important to me as it is to you. i'm hungry you lose that connection because you think she doesn't understand you so then after several weeks and months of turning teachers out you realize you are so far behind your peers to catch up academically seems overwhelming and not worth your energy. and thenn to disrupt the class all of these disruptions get you sent to the principal's office to envoy the embarrassment of not knowing the material as they become worse chronic and severe than you are suspended from school. then your attendance rate drops in a desperation overcomes you you decide to drop out of school. with the limited options for employment it is not stable chenough you are living paycheck to paycheck you start a family and what is best for them in whatever he parentsn, wants a better future. so to work several jobs to become financially secure but to do so you're not spending family home with your your kids want you around your child's school once you there but being there are financial solvency. one of the biggest barriers to academic socialac success in social mobility is nutrition. jefferson elementary has students like this as well as countless schools across the country they are not only located in major urban areas but suburban and rural communities even in sheboygan county the lowest percentage of unemployment in the country changes affecting eligibility to access school nutrition has an overall negative e affect the schools and communities across the country. using the combined average from direct certified families the district has four schools eligible participating in the tprogram that allows the schools to operate free breakfast and lunch to all students regardless of participation in the snap program.n they no longer have to have a compact one - - a complex application by the simpler form that used to determine if they are fyeconomically disadvantaged when all students are participating in school lunch it creates an environment free of stigma if they are eating the same meal it's a pair less apparent which come from low income families if they participate without negative stigma that increases dramatically our data shows when more students have meal options then we can adjust schedule to serve breakfast in the classroom that allows teachers and students to share a meal and those relationships that go beyond education they can talk about their lives outside of school and learn important social schools - - social skills those relationships created are invaluable to focus on the whole child offering free meal options to focus energy and resources parents have to buy fewer groceries because they know their child will have a nutritious breakfast and spending quality time with their kids rather than franticallyy preparing breakfast and lunch is and they can use that money to provide other essential needs for theirne families or their own career advancement. with a broad-based eligibility a segment of families will no longer qualify for snap when this percentage goes down we are unable to offer free breakfast and lunch to all students. without these options available families are forced to make tough decisions for theirio families the result is an increase in hunger and less educational opportunity and upward mobility for our country's most valuable and vulnerable population, our kids thank you so much for this opportunity to present the story about jefferson elementary school and i thank you very much. ms. sullivan five minutes. >> chairman and members of the committee thank you for the opportunity to prove one - - to present testimony i am diane sullivan i am experiencing hunger and i have been anti- poverty advocate for the past 20 years. and for those harmful policies and then for those states to consider those economicni conditions determining which of those residents qualify. my family is among the three.1 million americans who will lose snaps benefits if this proposed rule stands. because my two daughters work in addition to my own income from their part-time jobs is considered when determined eligibility our combined monthly gross income is $124 above the federal limit of 130 percent. for a familyly of five. but because it has broad eligibility and the work-related expenses are consistentcu the income after deductions qualified s $187 of monthly benefits. my state ranks highest in rental housing cost second in childcare and first in terms of the cost of our food. and allowing states to consider these barriers faced by residents for the massachusetts allow for households up to 200 percent to be considered for snap. not eligible by considered. and then to receive pamphlet walkout was not benefits that is not how this works. 135 percent and then to determine and then to fall below the federal threshold and it took three months of the confusion we are recovering from the time for what we must be eligible. that i was dipping into funds for rent and utilities and visiting food pantries to feed myo family. that the vehicle broke down and needed repair the juggling act had us all in 2019 holiday season. my children do not ask for much they are well-adjusted and respectful and caring but that doesn't minimize the pain that i as a mothers that fulfillshe the modern wish list and filling it with a feast i was empty under the tree with their gifts should have been and we ate the one meal that we were grateful. the fruit bowl often sat empty i stretch one meal into two. and to be pushed back into the same situation that is implemented without snap in addition to having less food at home i sons can lose access to free school meals. even with the reduced cost at $252 of an annual expense my already overwhelmed budget .cannot afford. further, we will lose access to the healthy incentive program making purchase fresh produce from farmers more affordable i'm an advocate for our neighbors who struggle to afford food in this nation of agricultural abundance. the past two years have taught me that productive farmers who do produce the most affordable food options in the world are perhaps the most best friends low income people could have increasingly policymakers and food activists face burdens that drive up food prices. low income families are caught in the middle between one ideology that's more expensive than the other of the safety net like many burdens placed on farmers is designed by people who could afford not even to look at food prices when they shop. please understandan from someone who has worked hard and struggled and raised really good children against the odds this is a got shot to those least equipped thank you for taking the time from hearing not just policy expert but also the six beer one - - expert in the experience of hunger. thank you. >> you have five minutes. >> chairman and ranking member and members of the subcommittee i am a social studies teacher in west virginia. situated in the southern portion of the state which is struggling due to coal revenues the majority of my etudents come from household struggling to make ends meet many of my students are the primary caregivers of their younger siblings i have students who are homeless , lost parents to an overdose and are working evening jobs to contribute financially to their families. for these reasons and many more it is gutwrenching to see a proposal cut snap benefits that will only hurt these children and families even more. thank you for giving me the opportunity to share food insecurity is a real and tangible threat to my students and their well-being everyday i see the impact hunger can have on a student and academically students are unable to focu focus, causing them to miss vital information in class. the more information the missing class that further behind they fall. food insecurity affects families emotionally when parents are struggling to put food on the table many feel a sense of worthlessness. children can sense this especially students like mine. as educators we see them bring these issues into the classroom with them. they carry the emotional bowden - - the emotional burdens they have on the food and secure home i have witnessed this in many ways ranging from irritability and mood swings to outburst and beyond. this is a real issue that needs to be considered to provide access to food and nutrition archive. my real fear and concern is that if this proposal comes to fruition many of my students along with thousands of others in westni virginia will lose access to food at home and at school while it is true some of those students will qualify for food and reduced price meals it willr require parents or legal guardians to submit paperwork this is a purposeful unnecessary barrier there are countless instances they cannot complete the requ