Texas officials began notifying the state’s Supplemental Food Assistance and Nutrition Program (SNAP) that food benefits will be cut off in November if the federal shutdown continues past Oct. 27.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) , which oversees SNAP, issued a letter on Oct.10 to state agencies warning that there would be “insufficient funds” to pay full benefits in November if the shutdown continued.
Texas has at least 3.5 million residents who rely on SNAP, and $614 million in funding of the program.
“SNAP has funding available for benefits and operations through the month of October,” according to a letter written by the FNS office to state agencies. “However, if the current lapse in appropriations continues, there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits for approximately 42 million individuals across the nation.”
SNAP benefits are transmitted to Lone Star Card users each month for use at grocery retailers. The payments can range from $200 to $400, depending on the household size with the average amount issued at $379, according to August statistics.
Currently, other assistance programs such as TANF and WIC, Medicaid and CHIP are not impacted.
The federal government officially shut down on Oct. 1 as lawmakers passed the deadline to secure funding for federal agencies, causing thousands to be furloughed or to work without pay, and resulting in disrupted services to Texans. The last government shutdown — a partial stoppage in 2018 into 2019 — lasted 35 days.