Press Releases

Today, Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) highlighted the historic and devastating cuts to federal food programs in President Trump’s megabill that he recently signed into law. Joined by Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients, nutrition advocates, educators, and local food providers, DelBene underscored that thousands of Washington families and children will go hungry because of the cuts in this law.

Last week, Congressional Republicans sent a massive bill to President Trump that slashes over $200 billion from SNAP, imposes new burdens on states, and jeopardizes food assistance for families, children, and seniors across the country. These cuts, along with ones made to Medicaid and student loan repayment programs, were made to fund another massive tax giveaway to ultra-wealthy people and large corporations. The law is estimated to add over $4 trillion to the national debt.

In Washington, 900,000 people receive SNAP with an average benefit of only $6 per day. Because of Trump’s new law, more than 130,000 residents could lose some or all of their benefits under this legislation. The state has said that all SNAP recipients in Washington will see their benefits cut to some degree.

“No one should go hungry in the wealthiest country on Earth. This Republican megabill imposes cruel, unnecessary cuts that hurt working families, children, veterans, and seniors just to fund tax breaks for billionaires,” said DelBene. “These cuts will make it harder for people to feed their families and for local food banks to meet the growing need. I’ll continue fighting back against these harmful policies.”

“President Trump’s cruel bill will literally take food away from thousands of Washington children to pay for tax cuts for billionaires,” said Governor Bob Ferguson. “For many families, they’re already working to stretch every dollar. Hunger impacts kids’ performance in school, their health and their physical development. These cuts will adversely impact a generation of kids into the future.”

“In recent years, we’ve seen firsthand how interconnected food security is with housing, healthcare, education, and employment. SNAP plays a vital role in the safety net. When benefits are reduced—especially at the scale we are now seeing—families don’t just feel the impact, they’re forced into impossible choices: rent or groceries, medication or meals,” said Carla Rankin, Executive Director, Arlington Food Bank. “While food banks like ours work tirelessly to bridge the gap, we are not a substitute for strong federal nutrition programs. We rely on public support, private donations, and an army of volunteers—and those resources are not infinite.”

“What we anticipate with these SNAP and Medicaid cuts is we’re going to have increased demand on our services, because right now, we’re only serving about 50% of the eligible population for WIC, so we know our caseload is really going to increase,” said Nicole Flateboe, Executive Director, Nutrition First. “The One Big Beautiful Bill has also cut Medicaid, which we rely upon for establishing eligibility for our clients, so, that's going to just create increased administrative burden and red tape for getting these folks on the program."

Organizations represented at the event included Arlington Community Food Bank, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, Volunteers of America Western Washington, Arlington School District, Arlington Farmers Market, Washington State University SNAP-Ed, UFCW 3000, and Nutrition First.