Montgomery County Proposes $7.75 Million Aid Package as Shutdown Threatens SNAP Benefits
County leaders plan to tap reserve funds to support food banks, nonprofits and affected residents as federal food assistance is set to lapse on November 1.
By Neha Iyer ·
Montgomery County officials have unveiled a $7.75 million emergency aid package meant to cushion residents and community groups from the effects of the federal government shutdown, which is about to cut off SNAP food benefits nationwide.
Announced on Friday, the plan would draw on county reserve funds to support workers, families and nonprofit organizations. A central aim is to keep food banks and similar groups operating for as long as the shutdown lasts, at a time when demand for their services in the area is climbing.
Council President Kate Stewart said the county government is trying to keep pace with those growing needs. "We will be introducing a $7.75 million public service support package for Montgomery County residents and our nonprofit partners impacted by the ongoing government shutdown," Stewart said.
Local food providers say they are already stretched. Manna Food Center is reporting unprecedented demand for its food bank services, and many of those seeking help are doing so for the first time. Craig Rice, the organization's CEO, welcomed the county's move. "We know that there is work to be done — and today we are actually being provided with the resources to do that work," Rice said.
The county's action comes as SNAP benefits are scheduled to be suspended across the country on November 1 because of the shutdown. The program helps roughly 42 million Americans buy food. In the Washington region, about 14,000 people rely on it in D.C., 125,000 in Maryland and 140,000 in Virginia.
The suspension has also drawn legal action. On Tuesday, 22 state attorneys general, among them those from Maryland and D.C., filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture over its decision to suspend the benefits.
In Congress, Virginia Sen. Mark Warner told FOX 5 that he is introducing legislation that would require the USDA to use its own $6 billion reserve fund to keep SNAP payments going. Warner pointed to the scale of what is at stake and to rising food costs. "Now to have these benefits expire — 42 million Americans, hundreds of thousands of Virginians — particularly when we all know grocery prices have gone up double digits," Warner said.
Back in Montgomery County, the council is moving the aid package forward on an accelerated schedule. A public hearing is set for November 4, and a final vote is planned for November 18.
Source: FOX 5 DC
