New York, NY –New York Senators and Assembly Members of Puerto Rican descent sent a letter to Majority Leader Charles Schumer and House Speaker James Michael Johnson led by Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas demanding equity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for residents of Puerto Rico. Puerto Ricans are suffering from high rates of poverty and food insecurity at a disproportionate rate compared to the rest of the United States but are not eligible to participate in SNAP. The legislators are urging leadership to include the people of Puerto Rico in SNAP as they negotiate the farm bill.

For more than 100 years, Puerto Rico has been a part of the United States, but its residents remain second-class citizens. The Center for Policy and Budget says one-third of adult residents of Puerto Rico experience food insecurity,^[1] whereas the rate of food insecurity in the United States as a whole is 12.8%.^[2] Hunger is preventable in Puerto Rico and the United States government is choosing to ignore this issue by robbing the people of Puerto Rico of their fair distribution of SNAP benefits, a critical resource to access healthy food.

Puerto Rico operates under a federally capped block grant known as the Nutrition Assistance Program (NAP) which provides benefits that are 35-40% lower than benefits available in the States. The maximum monthly SNAP benefit in the contiguous 48 for a single-person household is $291 versus $183 under Puerto Rico’s NAP. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated food insecurity, leaving thousands without access to food, and forcing adults in families to skip meals to ensure others are fed.^[3] Food access and inequity in Puerto Rico is a systemic issue and is unconstitutional.^[4]

This is why SNAP benefits are increasingly important – to save lives. Both the United States Virgin Islands and Guam were granted full participation in the program in 1981. As citizens of the United States of America, Puerto Ricans are entitled to the full SNAP benefits and should not be ignored any longer.

“This disparity is a blatantly classist and racist policy, codified to maintain the disparities between the haves and have-nots. Food insecurity is a systemic issue that must be solved by our United States government for all, not just some, of its residents. We have the opportunity to properly serve the citizens, all of the citizens of this country, and ensure no one goes unfed. Including the people of Puerto Rico in SNAP is simply a course correction and the right thing to do for the health and well-being of Puerto Ricans,” said Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas.

"As a member of the Puerto Rican diaspora in New York, I stand with my fellow legislators in urging Congress to rectify a longstanding injustice by including Puerto Rico in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as part of the upcoming Farm Bill. The persistent denial of adequate nutritional support to Puerto Ricans, who are U.S. citizens, contradicts our nation’s commitment to the welfare of all its people. By integrating Puerto Rico into SNAP, we can take a significant step toward alleviating hunger and improving the lives of millions on the island," said Senator Luis R. Sepúlveda.

“Poverty is a policy choice, and the choice to keep some Americans from accessing aid to support their basic needs is not only unconscionable, it is unconstitutional according to one District court. The time is now to address this inequity and give Puerto Ricans access to the same SNAP benefits as other American citizens,” said Senator Kristen Gonzalez.

"The United States creates the conditions that perpetuate poverty among the Puerto Rican people. As a colonial power over the island with an unelected fiscal control board appointed by our government, the US has a responsibility and obligation to the people," said Council Member Alexa Avilés.

^[1] https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/introduction-to-puerto-ricos-nutrition-assistance-program

^[2] “Food Security Status of U.S. Households in 2022” US Department of Agriculture

^[3] https://publichealth.gwu.edu/survey-finds-40-percent-puerto-rican-families-reporting-food-insecurity-due-covid-19

^[4]Martínez v. U.S. Dep’t of Health & Human Servs. 478 F. Supp. 3d 155 (D.P.R. 2020). https://casetext.com/case/martinez-v-us-dept-of-health-human-servs-1