Reps. Gomez and Harder introduce legislation to address food insecurity on college campuses

Statement

Today, Congressman Jimmy Gomez (CA-34) introduced legislation to address the growing crisis of food insecurity among college students across the country. The Enhanced Access to SNAP Act (or EATS Act) would amend the Food and Nutrition Act to include "attending an institution of higher education" as a form of qualification, expanding SNAP eligibility to millions of college students experiencing hunger on a daily basis.

A recent study by the Government Accountability Office found that 39 percent of all low-income students experience food insecurity with approximately 31 percent of those students being first-generation college students. The study also showed that college students experiencing hunger have a harder time succeeding in school. By expanding SNAP benefits to college students facing food insecurity, the EATS Act will increase the likelihood these students -- especially low-income and first-generation students -- will graduate with a degree.

"Across the United States, many college students are skipping meals while others are going whole days without eating because they lack the means to support themselves," said Congressman Gomez. "These students -- many of whom are from low-income families and have worked tirelessly for their higher education -- deserve access to basic necessities like healthy meals without having to choose between going hungry and compromising their academic standings. Through the passage of the EATS Act, we can help lighten the financial burden college students have to bare, help them prioritize their academic success, and make the "starving college student' stereotype a thing of the past."

"A lot of my students at Modesto Junior College told me about having to skip meals because they couldn't afford to make ends meet -- we can do better than that in the United States of America," said Congressman Harder, a member of the House Agriculture and Education and Labor Committees. "Our bill will make sure these kids get the healthy food they need to get through school and on to their careers without having to choose between buying books and buying dinner."

"When a low-income person in our country makes it to college, it is because they have done everything we ask of them, in addition to overcoming great barriers along the way," said Jessica Bartholow of the Western Center on Law & Poverty. "We shouldn't let something as simple to solve as hunger undermine them and our investment in their education. But without the change made by the EATS Act, our country's best defense against hunger - the SNAP program - will remain out of reach for too many. We are so grateful for its introduction and look forward to working with the sponsors, college student leaders who are organizing on this issue across the country and our anti-hunger allies to secure its passage."

"We appreciate Representatives Gomez and Harder's efforts to close the college student hunger gap," said Ellen Vollinger, Legal Director of the Food Research & Action Center. "His bill will provide access to SNAP benefits for more struggling low-income college students. That access to SNAP will promote college students' food security and health now and help them stay on a path to complete their educations and look forward to brighter futures."

"Among the concerns college students face today, hunger and food insecurity remain painfully common, even as institutions develop on-campus basic needs centers to address this need," said University of California President Janet Napolitano. "Students across the country--especially those who are first-generation, non-traditional or have less access to resources--stand to benefit from the updates that the EATS Act will provide to outdated regulations that currently prevent thousands of students from accessing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and I am encouraged to see Congress recognize the need to make this change."

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