U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, joined U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and 24 of their colleagues in pressing the U.S. Department of Agriculture for more information about the cancellation of previously-approved funding through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) for food banks and other emergency food providers.
This would take food away from hungry Americans already facing high grocery prices and hurt American farmers being squeezed by tariffs and other cuts to domestic markets.
“We write regarding the reported cancellation of hundreds of millions of dollars in previously approved funding for food banks and other emergency food providers through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP),” wrote the Senators. “A cancellation of these funds could result in $500 million in lost food provisions to feed millions of Americans at a time when the need for food shelves is extremely high due to costly groceries and an uncertain economy.”
“If true, this major shift in a program utilized by emergency food providers in every state in the nation will have a significant and damaging impact upon millions of people who depend upon this program for critical food assistance,” the Senators continued. “In addition, this program consists of purchases of U.S. commodities at a time when America’s growers and producers are struggling due to tariffs, proposed tariffs, animal disease and many other challenges.”
In addition to Senators Luján and Klobuchar, the letter was signed by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Ron Wyden (D-Oreg.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Jeff Merkley (D-Oreg.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Angus King (I-Maine), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), and Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.).
This letter comes following a roundtable discussion Sen. Luján convened last week at Roadrunner Food Bank in Albuquerque where he discussed the specific needs of New Mexico food banks with stakeholders.
The full letter is available here.