The goal of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps, should be to help get people back on their feet during a difficult stretch in life. It was not intended for any individual to become over-reliant on this assistance. The SNAP program should be a hand-up, not a hand-out.

Unfortunately, state governments are encouraging able-bodied adults without dependents to remain in the program by taking advantage of COVID-era rules to bypass federal work requirements for SNAP. Under normal circumstances, federal law requires healthy adults without dependents younger than 49 years old to participate in work, training, or education for 80 hours per month. But this requirement is, in effect, being waived in certain states, including Wisconsin. As a result, the program is exhausted by people who are able to work, but choose not to.

SNAP participation has remained at levels seen during the height of the COVID-19 public health emergency — with more than 42 million participants, or roughly 12 percent of the population. Simultaneously, there are nearly twice as many job openings as the amount of unemployed Americans. Simply put, the government is doing a disservice to individuals who are able to work but are not actively seeking employment by waiving these requirements.

That is why I am proud to cosponsor the America Works Act, which will reinstate the work requirement rules that existed prior to the COVID-19 public health emergency, fight abuse within SNAP, and better enable adults to get off the sideline and back in the game. 

Last week, the House Oversight Committee's Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services conducted a hearing to investigate the role that reckless government spending, especially over the last few years, played in driving inflation to 40-year highs.

During the hearing, our witness outlined that our national debt as a share of GDP is on pace to surpass levels we haven’t seen since World War II. Instead of doubling down on failed economic policies, we need to root out wasteful spending and side with American workers and families.

I was glad to meet the folks behind Manitowoc Public Utilities, who serve our community by maintaining utility services for residents of Manitowoc.

It was incredible to see the amount of care, engineering, and welding that goes into the development of boats and yachts manufactured by Burger Boat. Thanks to the talented employees for showing me all the hard work and precise details that go into your designs.

As an advocate for individuals with disabilities, I was thrilled to meet some of the talented employees of Ascend Services in Manitowoc. Ascend provides individuals with disabilities with assistance on the job to help them achieve their highest level of personal growth!

I appreciated having the opportunity to visit Tank Technology in Princeton. Through your hard work, our local economy is stronger and Wisconsin is home to yet another world-class manufacturer.

It was great to meet with the Manitowoc Sunrise Rotary this week. Thanks for having me!