Oh, SNAP! Gov Vetoes Aid For Vocational Students
Governor Bruce Rauner vetoed 12 bills on Friday, including one affecting SNAP eligibility. Carter Staley/NPR Illinois
Gov. Bruce Rauner vetoed a dozen bills late Friday. Among them: House Bill 3211, a measure that would help low-income students qualify for federal SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps.
Statewide, that amounts to about 40,000 low-income students, says State Rep. Litesa Wallace (D-Rockford), who sponsored the measure.
“It had a ton of sponsors, it had overwhelming bipartisan support, it was one of those bills that just made sense,” she says.
Even Rauner praised the legislation, saying it would help students stay enrolled. But he used his amendatory veto power to strike the first paragraph of the bill — the part that said those students should be notified they’re eligible for SNAP. The Governor said those notices wouldn’t be the best use of limited funds.
The Illinois House is scheduled to meet Wednesday to consider a major k-12 school funding bill, and possibly take up other matters, such as HB 3211. But because regular session has already ended, it will take a three-fifths vote to save even a portion of the bill, Wallace says.
“So creating that eligibility for those vocational students pretty much does get wiped away if we don’t take any action on the amendatory veto,” she says.
Links
- Trump’s Proposed Cut to SNAP & Food Insecurity
- U Of I Ag Economist Says SNAP’s Connection To Obesity Overblown
- Food Stamps Saved, But The Next Clock’s Already Ticking
- States’ Rebellion Against Food Stamp Cuts Grows
- Rural Areas Worry About Food Stamp Cuts
- Pantries, Shelters Feeling Pinch Of Food Stamp Cut
- House Votes To Cut $4B A Year From Food Stamps
- House Passes Farm Bill Without Food Stamps
- US Rep. Davis Supports Cuts to Food Stamp Program