Dear Colleagues:
As Anne Megaro mentioned during last week's Town Hall, the latest federal spending bill proposes to eliminate SNAP-Ed, or as we call it in California, CalFresh Healthy Living. For those of you whose jobs depend on SNAP-Ed funding, I know this is an especially stressful and difficult time. Please know that we are not sitting idly by and waiting – we are acting on several fronts to inform our congressional members of the good work of SNAP-Ed.
On a potentially positive note: Although we don’t anticipate this language being removed in the House, all current information we have indicates that it will not pass the Senate. Nevertheless, we are not taking any chances; we are working hard to educate members on the positive impacts produced from our SNAP-Ed programming.
Several teams across UC are deeply engaged in communicating with the federal government on the impact of the proposed spending cuts. The CalFresh Healthy Living, UC office; UC Davis; UC ANR leadership; UC ANR Government Relations and UC Federal Government Relations are all focused on this effort. The California Department of Public Health and numerous other supporters such as the Association of SNAP Nutrition Education Administrators and the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities are also working tirelessly on this issue.
All of us are fighting for our nutrition educators and for this critical program. Everything we’re doing in California is being replicated in other states. Nationally, the APLU and our fellow land-grant universities are working in a united fashion to engage legislators and show the administration that SNAP-Ed will significantly advance the administration’s Make America Healthy Again goals.
Things are happening fast, and updates are constantly changing. I will share information as we receive it. In the meantime, we are actively exploring contingency plans. As part of our planning, we are identifying all employees currently funded by CalFresh Healthy Living, UC to review for potential impacts, while also considering existing and prospective funding sources. Additionally, we are looking at alternative staffing plans, including redeployment, with the goal of minimizing disruption to staff.
I want to specifically thank our entire CalFresh Healthy Living, UC state office team and the Nutrition Policy Institute's CalFresh Healthy Living evaluation team for their efforts in gathering data and talking points that convey the immense value of SNAP-Ed in so many of California's communities. And, as always, my thanks to everyone across UC ANR for your contributions during this challenging time.
Glenda Humiston