SAN ANTONIO – Several San Antonio Food Bank officials, including CEO Eric Cooper, held a press conference Friday morning pleading for Congress not to impose proposed cuts to food in federal budget talks.
The nonprofit said many of its concerns are connected to proposed cuts by the U.S. House to the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program, which is also known as SNAP.
Those concerns, and potential cuts to the food bank’s workforce and concerns around losing programs, have left some at the organization feeling “incredibly anxious,” Cooper told KSAT in March.
The San Antonio Food Bank operates with a combination of funding from federal, state, city and county dollars, along with donations from local companies, foundations, corporations and individuals.
Several of Friday’s speakers touched on SNAP benefits in one way or another.
Michael Guerra, the food bank’s chief philanthropy officer, framed the beginning of the press conference around values.
“Budget choices are moral choices; how we spend reflects what we value,” Guerra said.
Mario Obledo Jr., the chief of government & public affairs, said it had been tough for the families served by the food bank, especially with higher grocery prices.
Obledo described the several weeklong budget reconciliation process in Washington, which included potential SNAP and Medicaid cuts.
“If you know the San Antonio Food Bank, we cover 29 counties in Southwest Texas. The majority of them are rural,” Obledo said. “So, when you think about those counties and townships, and those folks out there that are trying to purchase food and get health care, things are looking tough.”
A statement from the food bank, read in three parts, broadly asked Congress to reject the proposed cuts.
“These proposed $200 billion cuts to SNAP would devastate our Texas families, our veterans (and) the whole state’s economy,” said Harriett Romo, chair of the food bank’s board of directors.
Cooper closed the news conference by saying it was intended to “encourage Washington to do the right thing.”
“We come together, here in San Antonio, united in the message that people should have food,” Cooper said. “Food is love ... it has the power to bring people together, and we believe that that’s what needs to happen in Washington. Hunger is not a red or a blue issue.”
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