With hundreds of thousands of North Carolina citizens receiving some form of government food assistance, usually through a program called SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, aka food stamps), the government plays an integral role in ensuring that North Carolinians have access to food. However, because of a new NC Senate bill, the right to food is at risk for 133,000 people in North Carolina. The NC Senate passed a bill hidden in its 2017 budget that would change eligibility requirements for the SNAP Program for residents of North Carolina. The NC Department of Health and Human Services estimates that these changes to the bill could cause 133,000 North Carolinians to lose access to government food assistance programs, with more than 50,000 of them being children. These children could also lose access to free and reduced price meals at school. With the SNAP program being federally funded with no budget cap, there is no budgetary benefit for North Carolina if the bill is passed. Even before the passing of this bill, North Carolina's rate of food insecurity was above average, which is why we must act now.

The passage of this bill by the NC House and by Governor Cooper would harm the wellbeing of many North Carolinians and by signing this petition, you are using your voice to tell our leaders to make the best decision for our citizens and to help hundreds of thousands of them keep their access to food.

Please visit http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/state-politics/article151063487.html and https://thinkprogress.org/north-carolina-food-stamps-slashed-708a43579c06 for more details about the situation in the NC General Assembly.