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E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 114 CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION Vol. 162 WASHINGTON, TUESDAY, JUNE 14, 2016 No. 94 House of Representatives The House met at 10 a.m. and was It is important to note that the law recipients who work tend to earn low called to order by the Speaker pro tem- doesn’t require States to offer job wages that keep them in poverty. They pore (Mr. BOST). training programs—most do not—and struggle to get the healthy food they f SNAP recipients have their benefits need. Often, they must eat less or skip cut off after 3 months even if they are a meal entirely because they simply DESIGNATION OF SPEAKER PRO searching for work or are working less have no money with which to purchase TEMPORE than 20 hours per week. food. The SPEAKER pro tempore laid be- So who are the ABAWDs? A provision in the 1996 welfare law al- fore the House the following commu- While some on the other side of the lows States to suspend the 3-month nication from the Speaker: aisle tend to stereotype these vulner- limit in areas with high and sustained WASHINGTON, DC, able adults, the truth of the matter is unemployment. In the aftermath of the June 14, 2016. there is no one face to the ABAWD pop- Great Recession, Democratic and Re- I hereby appoint the Honorable MIKE BOST ulation. This is a very diverse group. publican Governors requested and re- to act as Speaker pro tempore on this day. About 45 percent are women. Close to ceived waivers from the 3-month limit, PAUL D. RYAN, one-third are over 40 years old. Many and the limit has not been in effect in Speaker of the House of Representatives. have limited educational experiences, most States during the past several f with more than 80 percent having no years. But as the economy continues to more than a high school education or a MORNING-HOUR DEBATE recover, fewer areas qualify for waivers GED. Some have mental health issues, despite the fact that many of these vul- The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursu- difficult histories of substance abuse, nerable Americans still struggle to find ant to the order of the House of Janu- or are ex-offenders who have nowhere long-term, stable jobs. As these waiv- ary 5, 2016, the Chair will now recog- else to turn, and as many as 100,000 are ers expire this year, it is expected that nize Members from lists submitted by veterans. more than 500,000 and as many as 1 mil- the majority and minority leaders for These childless adults on SNAP are lion of our poorest neighbors will be morning-hour debate. extremely poor and often experience cut off from SNAP. Thousands already The Chair will alternate recognition chronic homelessness. They often turn began losing their benefits on April 1 between the parties, with each party to SNAP as a safety net when they lose as 23 States began implementing the limited to 1 hour and each Member their jobs, when their hours at work time limits for the first time since be- other than the majority and minority get cut, or when their wages are so low fore the recession. leaders and the minority whip limited they are unable to make ends meet. These waivers are providing support to 5 minutes, but in no event shall de- Most childless adults on SNAP who are as they were intended to: helping our bate continue beyond 11:50 a.m. able to work do. At least 25 percent of communities overcome hardship and f these households work while receiving providing a lifeline to vulnerable SNAP, and about 75 percent work in adults who are unable to find work dur- END HUNGER NOW the year before or after receiving bene- ing difficult times. So I am greatly dis- The SPEAKER pro tempore. The fits. While many struggle with job inse- appointed by the proposals offered by Chair recognizes the gentleman from curity, among those households that Speaker RYAN to eliminate the ability Massachusetts (Mr. MCGOVERN) for 5 worked in a typical month while re- of States to request these waivers dur- minutes. ceiving SNAP or at some point during ing times of economic hardship. Mr. MCGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, the the following year, about half worked Mr. Speaker, cutting off food assist- 1996 welfare reform law imposed new full time for 6 months or more in the ance for vulnerable adults who are un- limitations on able-bodied adults with- year after they were on the program. able to make ends meet is a rotten out dependents, known as ABAWDs, re- Because childless adults receive only thing to do, and it only makes hunger ceiving food assistance through the limited government assistance, access worse in our communities. How does SNAP program. These 18- to 49-year- to SNAP becomes a critical lifeline to making hunger worse make it easier to olds who do not have children or serve these Americans who are living in pov- get a job? Every single congressional as caretakers to other individuals have erty. After these vulnerable adults district is home to Americans who are access to SNAP for only 3 months in leave the SNAP program, research sug- struggling with hunger. The hardships any 3-year period when they are not gests that many continue to face in- they face are exactly why such cuts are employed at least half time or are in a credible hardship. While some continue so cruel. These proposals are mean- work training program. to struggle to find jobs, former SNAP spirited, political documents that are b This symbol represents the time of day during the House proceedings, e.g., b 1407 is 2:07 p.m. Matter set in this typeface indicates words inserted or appended, rather than spoken, by a Member of the House on the floor. H3757 . VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:48 Jun 14, 2016 Jkt 059060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4634 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A14JN7.000 H14JNPT1 smartinez on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with HOUSE H3758 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE June 14, 2016 based on the false narrative that people humanitarian crisis, thousands more the cause of freedom. But, no matter don’t want to work. will die, and we will look back on this what, President Barack Obama must If my Republican friends were serious period of history knowing that Amer- act now, or even more lives could be about getting people back to work and ica failed both the Syrian people and lost. I encourage my colleagues in this responsibly moving those who can the cause of freedom. chamber to join me in this call to ac- work off of public assistance, their We must move quickly to protect the tion. budgets would reflect that, but they innocent civilians who are under at- f don’t. Republicans have offered no tack. This means America must use its ORLANDO SHOOTING guarantees that vulnerable Americans influence to stop the current flurry of will have access to job training pro- airstrikes on civilian areas, and Russia The SPEAKER pro tempore. The grams that will get them back to work. must be part of this solution. If Amer- Chair recognizes the gentleman from Many job training programs are al- ica fails to lead in negotiating a cease- Oregon (Mr. BLUMENAUER) for 5 min- ready stretched incredibly thin. If Re- fire immediately, the catastrophic utes. publicans were serious, they would in- losses of life will continue. Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, we crease job training funding so that We must accomplish a longer term should all be concerned with the kill- more Americans could get the help cessation of hostilities, and we must ing of innocents. Let’s start right here they need to get back on their feet. allow the Syrian people free movement in America where we are under attack. We are all still reeling from the hor- And, at every turn, they have resisted so that the innocent are able to escape rific violence in Orlando—49 killed, calls to increase the minimum wage. harm’s way. A no-fly zone must be es- more than 50 wounded. It is the worst Work ought to pay in this country. tablished so that Syria is able to heal mass shooting in American history. I sometimes wonder if my friends on into a place that promotes justice and The killer was someone who, in his own the other side of the aisle have ever freedom for all citizens. words, identified with ISIS, a met working people who are living in Does this photo of Syria look famil- madman’s fury directed at the GLBT poverty and who rely on SNAP for ac- iar? You may remember seeing similar community, who were slaughtered in a cess to food. The truth is their neatly destruction in Bosnia almost 20 years place of comfort, release, and joy. It packaged rhetoric doesn’t match the ago. This is Bosnia. The war in Bosnia was especially jarring because this has reality of those who are working to in the mid-1990s provides a thought- provoking blueprint as we search for been an unprecedented period of make ends meet. progress for the GLBT issues on every We must reject harmful attempts to solutions in Syria. With the disintegra- front. New landmarks have been limit SNAP participation for our vul- tion of Yugoslavia in 1992, the region achieved. nerable neighbors and, instead, work devolved into an ethnic civil war—first While this outrage is tragic, horri- on solutions to end hunger now.

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