On Friday night, leading House Democrats criticized the Trump administration for its decision to withhold food assistance from millions of low-income individuals, labeling the move both heartless and unlawful.
“It’s a shocking dereliction of duty to take food away from 42 million children, seniors, and veterans,” stated House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries from New York.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has allocated over $5 billion from an emergency fund authorized by Congress, intended to support the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) during crises. However, reports indicate that the USDA has decided not to disburse these funds if the government shutdown continues past October 31.
According to a memo first reported by Axios, the USDA maintains that the current shutdown doesn’t qualify as an emergency. This reserve fund was established for situations like natural disasters, which were initially framed by Democrats. The USDA argues that using these funds for SNAP during this shutdown would be illegal.
“The Emergency Fund is designated for crises that necessitate food assistance in disaster-stricken areas—events such as hurricanes or floods,” the memo clarified.
However, this statement contradicts earlier plans released by the Department of Agriculture, which stated, “It’s clear Congress intended for SNAP to continue to operate, offering multi-year contingency funds for states to manage administrative costs during a federal shutdown.”
That previous plan has since been withdrawn.
The updated policy stipulates that the Department of Agriculture will not reimburse states that attempt to use their own resources to cover gaps in food assistance during the shutdown.
“Each state is responsible for funding the benefits, with no avenues for reimbursement,” the memo explained.
This reimbursement policy is generally agreed upon, but Democrats assert that state funds meant for direct assistance should enhance SNAP, even if they aren’t counted as formal benefits.
However, the issue of not utilizing emergency funds for benefits is more contentious. Advocates and Democratic supporters of SNAP have argued for weeks that the government’s refusal to access reserve funds is unlawful.
These claims intensified on Friday night following the USDA memo’s release.
In a joint statement, House Appropriations Committee ranking Democrat Rep. Rosa DeLauro from Connecticut and Agriculture Committee ranking member Rep. Angie Craig from Minnesota called the new policy not only legally questionable but a “brutal” attack on impoverished Americans.
“This may be the most cruel and illegal act the Trump administration has executed: halting funds that are legally designated to feed struggling Americans while profiting from lucrative deals elsewhere,” they noted in their statement.
