As The Government Shutdown Drags On, Food Assistance For Millions Could Run Out

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers SNAP (food stamps), has not announced a plan for March. Suspending benefits or paying them partially could have catastrophic consequences ― decimating household budgets and even provoking widespread hunger.

With a $65 billion annual cost, food benefits are one of the government’s biggest and most important domestic programs. The expansion of the earlier food stamp program in the 1960s and ’70s helped eradicate starvation in the U.S. The average allotment is about $123 per month per person, and no previous shutdown interrupted benefits.

Some experts argue that the government should consider SNAP an “entitlement” like Social Security or Medicare, and keep paying for it despite not appropriating funds. Those programs continue to disburse payments during government shutdowns. The USDA has not responded to requests about the entitlement path.

Sonny Perdue, the secretary of USDA, declined to get into what would happen in March during a recent conference call with reporters. He said ... that Democrats ought to give in to Trump’s wall demands.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/government-shutdown-food-assistance-snap_us_5c488cb1e4b0b66936760e94