A new Siena College Research Institute poll, in partnership with Feeding New York State, indicates strong support for a package of legislative and Farm Bill proposals active in Congress.

According to the poll of 1,000 U.S. residents aged 18 and older, there is 80% support for increasing SNAP benefit levels; 77% support for the Universal School Meals Program and 82% support for making the local Food Purchase Assistance Program, or LFPA, a permanent program.

All the programs are part of the federal Farm Bill, which is currently being negotiated by Congress. 

Dan Egan, executive director of FEEDING New York State, discussed the poll with Capital Tonight’s Susan Arbetter.

“Ordinary Americans recognize that the real problems facing families should be addressed with sensible public investments in the Farm Bill. We have it in our power to improve the lives of families, farmers, and all Americans, and we must seize this opportunity to do so. When it comes to helping our neighbors, Americans are not polarized – they are united,” he told Capital Tonight.

The current federal Farm Bill was passed before the pandemic in 2018.

Typically, the Farm Bill is a five-year plan, but in November of last year, Congress passed a one-year extension. A new version of the Farm Bill is due at the end of September.

Farm and nutrition advocates are pushing for an updated bill because farmers have seen an historic drop in their net income over the past two years and need updates to many programs funded by the bill.

The survey has a margin of error of +/- 3.3 percentage points.