House Democrats are seeking to block the Trump administration’s cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Changes to the SNAP Requirements for Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents are set to take effect in April.
The Department of Agriculture says the rule revises the conditions under which USDA would waive, when requested by states, the able-bodied adult without dependents time limit in areas that have an unemployment rate of over ten percent or a lack of sufficient jobs.
Representative Marcia Fudge, an Ohio Democrat and chair of the House Ag Subcommittee on Nutrition, announced House support of the lawsuit, filed by 15 states, including the District of Columbia.
The lawsuit says the rule strips SNAP benefits from 700,000 recipients in a move rejected by the 2018 farm bill.
Representative Fudge says the rule “does real harm to SNAP’s ability to accomplish its mission,” adding the House will “fight this hypocritical and political cruelty.”