(Tuesday, April 4, 2023 – Washington, D.C.) – The Governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro R. Pierluisi, sent a letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies supporting the request made by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand to maintain the funding for the Nutrition Assistance Program (NAP) for Puerto Rico in the Fiscal Year 2024 Subcommittee Appropriations bill, and urged them to provide an additional $1 billion for the program. Likewise, the Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration, Luis D. Dávila, expressed his support for the introduction of the Puerto Rico Nutrition Assistance Fairness Act.
Since the passage of the 1981 Budget Reconciliation Act, low-income families on the Island are no longer included in the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) and instead receive nutritional assistance through a capped block grant under NAP.
“The NAP provides nutritional assistance to low-income households in Puerto Rico, which is essential in helping families put food on the table. The program significantly impacts the health and well-being of our citizens, particularly children and the elderly, who are most vulnerable to food insecurity. Nonetheless, the Nutritional Assistance Program falls significantly short of the nutritional needs of the 3.2 million American citizens living in Puerto Rico,” expressed the Governor in the letter sent to Chairman Heinrich and Ranking Member Hoeven.
According to the Thrifty Food Plan, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture develops to estimate the cost of limited-budget diets, the current disparity between maximum household benefits for Puerto Rico versus 48 states ranges from 21% to 24%, and it's much more significant when comparing Puerto Rico to Guam or the U.S. Virgin Islands. This difference exists even though the Island imports a yearly amount of $6.5 billion in agricultural products from the mainland, a value only surpassed by Canada and Mexico.
At the start of the 118th Congress, Governor Pierluisi wrote to congressional leadership outlining his legislative priorities and highlighting that much work remains to be accomplished to achieve equitable treatment for families on the Island and the paramount importance of Puerto Rico's transition from NAP to SNAP. In his letter to the Subcommittee, the Governor also mentioned the impact recent emergencies have had on food insecurity on the Island.
“Moreover, as Puerto Rico has experienced during recent emergencies such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and the COVID-19 pandemic, NAP lacks the flexibility provided in SNAP to meet the nutritional assistance needs of its most vulnerable population,” said Governor Pierluisi.
