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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Over 2 million Illinois residents receive
3Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits;
4this number includes older adults, young children, people with
5disabilities, and working families; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Over 60,000 food-insecure Illinois residents
7enroll or re-enroll in SNAP every month; and
 
8    WHEREAS, SNAP is an important component of Illinois'
9economy that generates over $3 billion in annual spending; and
 
10    WHEREAS, The Department of Human Services issues SNAP
11benefits on the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, and
1210th days of the month; and
 
13    WHEREAS, The Department of Human Services has switched from
14operating on two fiscal months to utilizing one fiscal month,
15consistent with nearly every other state in the nation, for
16greater efficiency and accuracy; and
 
17    WHEREAS, In order to minimize the "stretch" newly approved
18customers experience between their first and second issuances,
19the Department of Human Services instituted a 10 day issuance
20schedule, effective July 2013; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, The United States Department of Agriculture
2(USDA), which controls the funding for SNAP, sent a letter to
3each state encouraging states to stagger SNAP distribution
4throughout the month; and
 
5    WHEREAS, The Department of Human Services must balance
6staggering benefits to meet the needs of retailers with
7minimizing hardship to SNAP recipients; and
 
8    WHEREAS, The Department of Human Services, grocers, and
9poverty advocates are all interested in establishing a
10distribution system that meets the needs of all parties; and
 
11    WHEREAS, On May 31, 2013, the Task Force on Hunger and the
12Efficient Distribution of SNAP Benefits was created by House
13Joint Resolution 43 of the 98th General Assembly to discuss
14these issues and prepare a report to the General Assembly that
15detailed how SNAP benefits could be distributed more evenly
16throughout the month without increasing hunger in the State of
17Illinois; and
 
18    WHEREAS, On October 1, 2013, the Task Force prepared and
19submitted the report to the General Assembly which detailed an
20agreed, temporary solution to gradually move, over a 3-month
21period, current cases from the 4th, 7th, and 10th to the 13th,

 

 

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117th, and 20th days of the month, and to place new and
2returning cases on the 4th, 7th, and 10th days of the month;
3and
 
4    WHEREAS, As the number of cases on the 13th, 17th, and 20th
5days of the month will diminish over time, there is a need to
6continue to discuss a permanent solution for 2016 and beyond;
7therefore, be it
 
8    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
9NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
10SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the Task Force on Hunger and the
11Efficient Distribution of SNAP Benefits be re-established and
12remain active through December 31, 2015; and be it further
 
13    RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall add one additional
14member, appointed as follows: One person appointed by the
15Governor who is a representative of a labor organization which
16represents workers primarily in the food industry; and be it
17further
 
18    RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall work to identify ways
19to achieve a permanent solution on how SNAP benefits are
20distributed in Illinois that addresses how SNAP benefits could
21be distributed more evenly throughout the month without
22increasing hunger in the State of Illinois.