U.S. Catholic bishops to lawmakers: SNAP policy is ‘our greatest concern’ in farm bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. bishops and Catholic charitable organizations sent a letter to senators asking them to strengthen domestic and international programs designed to alleviate hunger and to prioritize rural development and conservation efforts in the 2026 farm bill.

“Our greatest concern with the current draft is with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), our nation’s core nutrition program,” the bishops said in the letter sent to the leadership of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

The letter was signed by Louisville, Kentucky, Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Domestic Justice and Human Development Committee, and Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, chair of the USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace.

The bishops cautioned the draft of the farm bill released June 23 by the Senate Agriculture Committee “does not sufficiently strengthen or modernize SNAP.” They warned “it shifts focus away from addressing hunger itself and toward additional administrative and compliance requirements.”

Specifically, they urged lawmakers to delay a plan to shift costs to the states for two…