Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack stated the administration’s concerns with the House Agriculture Committee’s farm bill, especially with the $16 billion in cuts to nutrition programs. He said, “Unfortunately, the bill produced by the House Agriculture Committee contains deep cuts in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), including a provision that will deny much-needed food assistance to three million Americans, mostly low-income working families with children, as well as seniors. The proposed cuts will deny 280,000 children in low-income families’ access to school meals and reduce farm income across rural America. These cuts wouldn't just leave Americans hungry, they would stunt economic growth. The bill also makes misguided reductions to critical energy and conservation program efforts.” He pledged to continue to work with the committee throughout the farm bill process.