The government shutdown is set to take a toll on millions of people reliant on food aid benefits if it is not resolved by Nov. 1.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which provides food purchasing assistance to low-income people in the country, will reportedly run out of government funding by the end of October if the shutdown continues. The program is commonly known as “food stamps.” The halting of this subsidy is a concern that Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has warned about since the middle of the month.
“We’re going to run out of money in two weeks. So you’re talking about millions and millions of vulnerable families, of hungry families, that are not going to have access to these programs because of this shutdown,” Rollins said earlier this month.
On Thursday, Politico revealed that 25 states are informing SNAP recipients that they will not receive food aid benefits in November. This included California, the largest state in the country, and New Jersey, the most densely populated state in the nation, among others.
Nearly 42 million people in the United States, a little over 12% of the population, received SNAP benefits last year, with the average federal distribution being $187.20 per month. Government spending for the program was $99.8 billion in 2024. SNAP needs an operating government to continue distributing food aid benefits to those in need.
“SNAP benefits are available to low-income households meeting income and other eligibility criteria. Unlike the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) or child nutrition programs, SNAP is not targeted to specific subgroups,” read the program’s website. “SNAP households are diverse.”
Rollins emphasized that funding the program can’t occur if the government is shut down. She expressed hope that it would resume functioning sooner rather than later.
“We just can’t do it without the government being open,” Rollins said during an interview on NewsNation on Tuesday. “By Nov. 1, we are very hopeful this government reopens and we can begin moving that money out. But right now, half the states are shut down on SNAP.”
Massachusetts is one of the states that will cut off SNAP benefits. Gov. Maura Healey (D-MA) lamented the lack of federal funding and blamed President Donald Trump, claiming he was the “first president in U.S. history to cut off SNAP benefits to people in America,” Politico reported.
“The state funding can’t begin to match what the federal government provides,” Healey advised.
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Meanwhile, the Agriculture Department warned of an “inflection point” if the government shutdown continued, targeting Senate Democrats for prioritizing healthcare for illegal immigrants over the food aid needs of everyday Americans.
“We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats. Continue to hold out for healthcare for illegals or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive timely WIC and SNAP allotments,” read a statement from the USDA.
