The ongoing government shutdown is threatening to halt a critical food assistance program, potentially leaving tens of millions of the nation’s most vulnerable citizens without support.
Several states have begun warning that they will be forced to suspend Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits on November 1 if the shutdown continues. Texas has alerted its recipients that all November benefits will be halted if the shutdown extends past October 27. Similarly, Pennsylvania officials have stated they will be unable to distribute payments.
An alert on Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services website reads, “Because Republicans in Washington DC failed to pass a federal budget, causing the federal government shutdown, November SNAP benefits cannot be paid.” Other states, including Minnesota and New York, have issued similar warnings that benefits are “at risk” or “may be delayed.”
The SNAP program, commonly known as food stamps, is federally funded through the USDA but administered at the state level. It provides electronic benefits used to purchase food for approximately 42 million low-income individuals. This state-level administration means the timing of potential benefit disruptions will vary across the country.
The shutdown is also jeopardizing the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), which serves more than 7 million low-income mothers, expectant parents, and young children. Although the White House provided $300 million to support the program through October 31, officials project these funds will run out as early as next month without new appropriations.
“Without additional funding, State WIC Agencies may be forced to take drastic measures that prevent families from accessing the services they need, such as halting food benefits,” Georgia Machell, CEO of the National WIC Association, said in a statement. “This would directly jeopardize the health and nutrition of millions of mothers, babies, and young children.”
The threat to SNAP was confirmed by Ronald Ward, the program’s acting head, who warned state health officials in a recent letter that “if the current lapse in appropriations continues, there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits.”
The potential suspension of benefits comes at a challenging time for SNAP, as the program has already faced significant budget cuts that placed additional strain on its resources.
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