Shutdown: Food Stamp Benefits Set to Expire for 42 million Recipients
I had no idea the number of people receiving supplemental food assistance was over 40 million.
With the federal government shutdown continuing, several media reports now say federal food assistance payments will likely lapse on November 1st.
WASHINGTON – More than 40 million low-income food stamp beneficiaries are expected to receive less help with grocery bills — or no help at all — in the coming days.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is threatening to withhold billions of dollars in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) contingency funding, which Congress has already allocated for emergency scenarios, if the government shutdown stretches into November.
There is between $5 billion and $6 billion currently in that fund, experts say. That’s not enough to cover the estimated $8 billion in SNAP benefits due out next month, but it would allow for partial payments to help low-income Americans defray food costs.
On Friday, however, USDA released guidance saying it won’t use those funds to cover SNAP benefits if the government shutdown extends beyond Oct. 31 — a move that appears designed to maximize the pressure on Senate Democrats to support a GOP spending bill to reopen the government.
In a memo, first reported by Axios, the USDA said the reason is simple: The contingency fund was designed to respond to unforeseen events, like natural disasters, and the current shutdown doesn’t qualify because it was manufactured by Democrats. To spend the money on SNAP benefits during such an event, the USDA argues, would be illegal. (read more)
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