Large companies like Comcast, Delta, and Verizon that publicize their charitable hunger relief efforts are cheering on the Republican “megabill” that would slash the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by roughly 30%, taking away food assistance for millions of families and worsening hunger.
The “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBB), the multi-trillion-dollar tax and spending package passed by the House last month, is now moving rapidly in the Senate, where it is planned to be passed needing the support of only a simple majority via the budget reconciliation process. Like the House bill, the Senate’s version includes steep cuts to the SNAP program through expanding the program’s work requirements, shifting costs to states, and capping benefit increases. In a one-pager accompanying their version last week, Senate Republicans said these rule changes would help SNAP recipients “move toward greater independence through work, education, and training opportunities.”
The nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) described the House bill’s nearly $300 billion in proposed cuts to the program through 2034 as “by far the largest cut to SNAP in history” and estimates that about 6 million people would be at risk of losing their food assistance if it becomes law. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected the OBBB would withdraw food assistance from roughly 3.2 million adults in a typical month, including 1 million adults aged 55-64 and 800,000 parents of school-aged children. The bill would also cut Medicaid, while extending trillions of dollars in tax cuts that are weighted predominantly toward millionaires and the wealthiest.
While the bill takes food stamp aid away from millions of people, giant companies endorsing the Trump White House’s tax package would bank permanent extension of some business tax credits and are eyeing other benefits in the plan.
Among many things, the OBBB includes tax provisions addressing interest deductions, domestic research and development tax credits, and the immediate expensing of equipment. Many of the top lobbying spenders in recent years have lined up behind the bill, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable group of CEOs, which in 2019 released a statement pledging that its members would be socially responsible.
