Copyright Hartford Courant
After two federal judges ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s administration must continue to fund SNAP, the nation’s biggest food aid program, using contingency funds during the government shutdown, Connecticut officials and organization immediately reacted. Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said she is hopeful that this ruling avoids the catastrophic consequences of leaving our 360,000 (state) residents that rely on SNAP hungry. “I urge the administration to ensure that SNAP benefits are dispersed in a swift manner so that families are not further hurt by the chaos, confusion, and cruelty of this shutdown. Connecticut has been proud to stand up for our residents as we continue to navigate the impacts of this shutdown, but it is well past time for the President and Congress to act.” A CT senator is living on $6.20 and that means a lot of rice. Here’s why he’s doing it. The rulings came a day before the U.S. Department of Agriculture planned to freeze payments to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program because it said it could no longer keep funding it due to the shutdown. Attorney General William Tong said, “This decision leaves no room for doubt— USDA can and must release the contingency funds and stop weaponizing hunger for political advantage. Donald Trump now has a stark legal and moral choice before him— he can keep fighting this losing battle, he can insist on starving American families for political leverage, or he can release the funds now.” The program serves about 1 in 8 Americans and is a major piece of the nation’s social safety net. Word in October that it would be a Nov. 1 casualty of the shutdown sent states, food banks and SNAP recipients scrambling to figure out how to secure food. Some states said they would spend their own funds to keep versions of the program going. The program costs around $8 billion per month nationally. Gov. Ned Lamont said, “today’s ruling found that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s decision to suspend SNAP benefits was likely unlawful. “While this ruling may offer last-minute relief for the many who rely on SNAP, I urge the federal government to honor it now and for Secretary Rollins to use not only the department’s contingency fund but also her transfer authority to increase benefits. Connecticut Department of Social Services is prepared to issue November benefits as soon as USDA authorizes payment. In the meantime, we will continue to work closely with our community food networks.” SNAP has provided grocery help for 60-plus years; here’s how it works House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3, said, “I have repeatedly called attention to the over $5 billion that is available to pay food stamp benefits in the case of an emergency. Now, that funding must flow. The Trump administration cannot use children, seniors, and veterans as disposable pawns in their political games. People will go hungry if these funds do not flow immediately. “I am grateful for the work of Connecticut Attorney General Tong and the other states’ Attorneys General, as well as Mayor (Justin) Elicker and the City of New Haven along with other local governments, who quickly responded to sue the Trump administration over their illegal withholding of contingency funds that must be used to pay food stamp benefits in November. “The judges’ rulings affirm what I have been saying all along: this money can and must be used to provide nutrition assistance for the 42 million Americans who rely on it to put food on the table. Delauro said she worried “benefit payments will likely be delayed by several days or more.” It wasn’t immediately clear how quickly the debit cards that beneficiaries use to buy groceries could be reloaded after the ruling. That process often takes one to two weeks. The rulings are likely to face appeals. As shutdown drags on, CT US representative recalls time as a SNAP recipient Elicker noted, “SNAP is a lifeline for over 30,000 New Haven residents and over 42 million Americans and it’s time to stop playing politics with hunger and people’s ability to put food on the table for themselves and their families. New Haveners can be proud that as a city we’re standing up for our residents and the result is having both a local and nationwide impact.” “No child or family in our city, state or country should go to bed hungry. The federal court’s decision affirms what every New Havener and American of good conscience knows to be true: the Trump Administration’s attempt to withhold SNAP benefits and food assistance from our most vulnerable residents is as illegal as it is immoral,” Elicker said. “I applaud the court’s decision and join with our fellow plaintiffs in urging the Trump Administration to abide by the judge’s ruling and immediately distribute funds to continue the SNAP program.” U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. said, “While I welcome this court order, it’s only a temporary stop gap— a band aid on a deeper, gaping wound. Millions of Americans are struggling to put food on the table— a harsh reality that President Trump has abjectly failed to recognize, and Republicans have made worse by refusing to work with Democrats on reopening the government and providing access to health care. “The Administration is forcing Americans to make unconscionable choices, like whether to feed a hungry child or to take them to a doctor for medical treatment,” he said. “Americans see through this cruelly malign strategy— inflicting pain to maximize political pressure. They’re using our most vulnerable Americans as political pawns.” Government lawyers say a contingency fund containing some $5 billion cannot legally be used to maintain SNAP, a program that costs about $8 billion a month. The states say it must be used for that purpose and point to more money available in a second federal account with around $23 billion. The Associated Press contributed to this story.
