The food stamp program receives about $8 billion per month through annual Congressional appropriations, which lapsed the day the shutdown began. But there’s supposed to be about $5 billion worth of funds to support SNAP in the case of an emergency—or, say, a shutdown, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which runs the program. Supposed to be.
Before October, the agency’s website stated the program had “multi-year contingency funds that can be used” in shutdowns. But the USDA has since removed the page and, in a recent memo, states that the contingency fund “is not available to support FY 2026 regular benefits, because the appropriation for regular benefits no longer exists.” A giant alert on the agency’s website currently reads: “Bottom line, the well has run dry. At this time, there will be no benefits issued November 01.”
“We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats,” the alert continues. “They can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance.” Jesus. Also, an important reminder that what Democrats are actually trying to do is ensure millions of Americans don’t lose their access to affordable health insurance.
SNAP benefits provide about one in eight U.S. residents an average of $187 a month in food aid, and is relied on by almost 42 million low-income Americans. Nearly 60% of benefits go to families with children, and at least 7.8 million elderly individuals and about 4 million nonelderly disabled people benefit from the program.
Every mention of SNAP being frozen should include this simple fact:
TRUMP is CHOOSING TO CANCEL FOOD ASSISTANCE. There are literally emergency dollars available to keep SNAP funded.
— Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (@malcolmkenyatta) October 27, 2025
Still, the GOP remains adamant about positioning itself as the heroes of a problem they were the chief architects of. On Friday, a gaggle of Republican reps introduced a bill called “Keep Snap Funded,” which is again ironic, given that they were the party that voted to defund the program just months ago.
In an effort spearheaded by Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell (D-Mass.), 23 AGs and three governors filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the Trump administration for illegally suspending SNAP benefits. Some states have also moved to try and cover the costs; California’s Governor Gavin Newsom deployed National Guard members towards food distribution efforts and allocated $80 million in funding to support food banks; and New York Governor Kathy Hochul vowed to fast-track $30 million for food relief. But, according to the USDA memo, these states will not be reimbursed by the federal government when it reopens.
At the time of writing, the Senate has officially turned down its 13th stopgap, sending us into the 28th day of the shutdown, the second-longest in U.S. history. The longest shutdown was 35 days during Trump 1.0, when he refused to sign a budget deal that didn’t include funds for his U.S.-Mexico border wall.
“They are now trying to reimagine themselves as the champions of federal workers, as the champions of food programs and health care,” Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) said of Republicans on Wednesday. “When all they have done is take an axe to all of that since they came into office.”
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