U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has pushed back against the idea of using block grants to fund the work of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). “Proposals to convert SNAP into a block grant are misguided and would mean the program could no longer respond to economic conditions and serve all eligible Americans without drastically reducing benefits,” Vilsack said in a statement. “As Congress begins working on the 2018 Farm Bill, (members) must protect SNAP and resist pressure to weaken the program by turning it into an ineffective block grant.” Vilsack said a House committee report released this week “reached a simple conclusion: SNAP provides a critical nutrition safety net for millions of low-income Americans, and we need to do all we can to protect and strengthen the program so it can continue effectively serving American families in need.” Read our story on local work to fight hunger.