U.S. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut says new Trump administration regulations would restrict food and energy assistance to low-income households. Murphy, who is a Democrat, is seeking bipartisan support to block the new rules.
One of the rules restricts eligibility for single adults to qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. The other new rule takes away the flexibility of northeastern states to determine which households qualify for federal home heating assistance.
The regulations come after Murphy helped secure a $50 million increase to federal low-income heating assistance in last month’s government funding bill.
The senator says he needs the support of a few Republicans to override the measures.
“I will be helping to lead the fight on the floor of the Senate to try to get my colleagues to rise up and oppose at least the two regulatory changes. By a majority vote in the House and the Senate, we can cancel a regulation before it goes into effect. And we are going to try to do that.”
Murphy spoke during a discussion with personnel from Connecticut social service agencies in Hartford.
He says about 57,000 Connecticut residents would be affected by the food stamp restrictions, while 10,000 households would be affected by the new restrictions on home heating assistance.
