Excluding TNSA and the RESTORE Act Leaves States to Bear the Brunt of H.R. 1 Cost-Share Burdens and Administrative Churn
Contact:
Claire Gross, Sr. Manager of Public Relations
cgross@ceoworks.org | (646) 370-8292
Washington, D.C.–June 23, 2026–The United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry released a farm bill text, notably omitting the Training Nutrition and Stability Act and the RESTORE Act. The following is a statement from Sam Schaeffer, Chief Executive Officer of Center for Employment Opportunities.
“The Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) is deeply disappointed by the U.S. Senate’s failure to include two crucial pieces of legislation in their farm bill text. The U.S. Senate has missed a golden opportunity to pass common-sense bipartisan legislation that simultaneously strengthens workforce development and protects food security—specifcally through the Training Nutrition and Stability Act (TNSA) and the RESTORE Act. Together these bills offer a vital fix to connect career training and food security, and finally lift the lifetime ban on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) enrollment for people with drug convictions.
Too often, justice-impacted people are thrown under the bus when it comes to social safety nets. Antiquated prejudice has caused dangerous benefit cliffs and lifetime exclusions that lock out justice-impacted people from economic opportunity in perpetuity, despite troves of evidence proving that benefits like SNAP lead to stability.
For nearly a decade people have had to choose between putting food on the table and a career to build family sustaining futures. TNSA ensures people enrolled in paid SNAP Employment & Training (SNAP E&T) activities, such as CEO’s program, don’t have their SNAP food benefits reduced or completely eliminated. This fix is crucial not only for justice-impacted people, a community who experiences food insecurity and unemployment rates much higher than the general population, but penalizes any American striving for independence.
TNSA fixes this flaw, ensuring SNAP E&T works as originally intended: as a bridge to lasting self-sufficiency, not a trap door. Without TNSA, these programs work against each other and instead of putting people on the path to independence, they get stuck in the gap between food security and career building. People cycle on and off SNAP causing a churn effect that creates administrative burdens and costly error rates. TNSA offers a direct solution. By stabilizing participants and limiting SNAP churn, TNSA helps states reduce administrative error rates and thus reduce cost-share burdens.
As states navigate the ongoing roll out of H.R. 1, we are concerned about how states will balance their budget amidst new cost share responsibilities. When budgets tighten, the first programs cut are the ones that serve justice-impacted populations. TNSA offers a direct solution. By stabilizing participants and limiting SNAP churn, TNSA helps states reduce administrative error rates and thus reduce cost-share burdens.
Furthermore, with the expansion of SNAP work requirements and the impending implementation of Medicaid work requirements, we must ensure the systems we have in place support compliance. It is imperative that enrollment in SNAP E&T does not inadvertently kick people off their food benefits. TNSA enhances program efficacy ensuring individuals can successfully meet their work requirements while maintaining life-preserving benefits.
We all share the goal of building safer communities and helping individuals achieve lasting financial independence. We thank Chairman Boozman for prioritizing the farm bill, but as the bill is drafted, it misses an opportunity for bipartisanship. We urge the Senate to come together for a bipartisan markup that includes TNSA and RESTORE. We look forward to working with the Chairman and Ranking Member to do so."
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About the Center for Employment Opportunities
The Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) provides immediate, effective, and comprehensive employment services exclusively to people recently released from incarceration. CEO currently operates in 30 cities in 12 states and is dedicated to ensuring justice-impacted people have opportunities to achieve socioeconomic mobility. For more information, visit ceoworks.org.