{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.ricketts.senate.gov/news/press-releases/ricketts-introduces-bill-to-improve-snap-efficiency/", "Ricketts Introduces Bill to Improve SNAP Efficiency", "2026-06-18", "2026", "2026-06", "Republican", "Senate", "NE", "Pete Ricketts", "R000618", "www.ricketts.senate.gov", "ricketts", "https://www.ricketts.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/?jsf=jet-engine:press-list&pagenum=", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) introduced the SNAP Staffing Flexibility Act. This bill would make the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) more efficient and reduce application backlogs by allowing limited term contractors. This would allow state agencies to make eligibility determinations and distribute benefits to those who need them more quickly.\n\n\u201cWhen Americans apply for SNAP, they need timely approval,\u201d said Ricketts. \u201cBacklogs can overwhelm state departments that provides these services. This bill would allow state agencies to hire contractors when they don\u2019t have sufficient staff. That way, Nebraskans can get the SNAP benefits they need on time.\u201d\n\nThe SNAP Staffing Flexibility Act would:\n\nAllow a state agency to hire contractors to perform Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) certification and application intake under certain conditions, including:\n\ntemporary staffing shortages,\n\nseasonal workforce shortages,\n\npandemics and other health emergencies,\n\nand natural disasters.\n\nRequire the Secretary of Agriculture to create a report of measures taken to address increases in SNAP program applications and any inabilities to process them.\n\nThis bill was introduced by Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE-2) and is included in the House-passed Farm Bill.", 1, "2026-06-19T06:50:32Z", "2026-06-19T06:53:40Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.ricketts.senate.gov/news/press-releases/ricketts-introduces-bill-to-improve-snap-efficiency/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.0995386876165867, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}