One of the provisions of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 was the lifetime ban of those with drug-related felony convictions from accessing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). This punitive policy was born of the prejudicial belief that recipients with an addiction or involvement with the drug trade would use their benefits to feed addiction and the trade, rather than feed themselves and their families with nourishment. While many states have modified or eliminated the ban entirely, over 20 still deny benefits to people with certain drug-related convictions with South Carolina maintaining the full lifetime ban for all convictions.
Denying access to a vital program like SNAP because of past or current involvement with the drug trade does not promote public safety or deter crime. Rather, it adds another cruel and needless barrier to successful re-entry and rebuilding of lives. Due to discrimination in the workforce of people with criminal records, those with felony convictions are at greater risk of poverty and hunger which in turn adds more difficulty in securing employment, housing, and other essential needs especially critical to addiction recovery. Banning people for prior convictions increases the likelihood of recidivism. It also exacerbates hunger for their family by denying resources to feed their children or elders in their care. Maintaining this ban says that our society believes some people deserve to go hungry.
Congress has the opportunity to right this wrong by passing the Re-Entry Support Through Opportunities for Resources and Essentials (RESTORE) Act. This bill if passed as a standalone, would reform the 1996 law and repeal the SNAP ban for felony drug convictions. It could also be incorporated in this year’s Farm Bill, which authorizes SNAP. As people of faith seeking to love mercy and do justice, we must lift our collective voices and tell our leaders that hunger should not be a reality for anyone. Urge your elected leaders to support the RESTORE Act.