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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican, accused Democrats in Congress of using working families as “leverage” in the federal budget fight. Yost, along with 18 other state attorneys general, sent letters to U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer asking for “a clean resolution” to reopen the government and prevent the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program from running out of money on Nov. 1. “This does not need to happen,” Yost wrote. “Congress can stop the threat right now by passing a clean continuing resolution that keeps essential services funded and protects those who rely on them. You have the power to prevent a crisis that is entirely avoidable.” The U.S. government shut down on Oct. 1 after Congress failed to pass a budget for the new fiscal year. Republicans and Democrats were divided on how much to spend on several items, including Affordable Care Act subsidies. “We would like to reopen the government, get an ironclad agreement to cancel the cuts, to lower the costs and save our health care,” U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown said at a press conference earlier this month. If those subsidies expire, the policy group KFF estimates that out-of-pocket premiums for millions of Americans could more than double. It’s been a sticking point in the budget fight, but the issue is coming to a head as the money for food benefits runs out. The U.S. Department of Agriculture provided October’s benefits but has warned that November’s may not be issued if the shutdown continues. The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services has told Ohioans the same thing. About 1.4 million Ohioans receive SNAP benefits. The state receives about $263 million each month in federal funding for food assistance, according to ODJFS. But it’s not paid out all at once. Benefits are staggered between November 2 and 20. State lawmakers are split on how to respond to the loss of about $14.5 million per day. Rep. Latyna Humphrey, a Columbus Democrat, has proposed using Ohio’s Rainy Day Fund to keep programs like SNAP, WIC, and cash assistance running. But Gov. Mike DeWine’s office has said the plan isn’t realistic because Ohio can’t access federal benefit accounts even if it wanted to. Food banks across Ohio are warning they can’t absorb the surge in demand if SNAP payments stop. “This sector can’t navigate that spike,” Human Service Chamber of Franklin County director Michael Corey said during a press conference earlier this month. For every one meal provided by a food bank, he said SNAP provided nine. Meanwhile, the liberal watchdog group Democracy Forward says it may sue the Trump-Vance administration for refusing to use available funds to keep SNAP going during the shutdown. “Instead of ensuring that families can continue to put food on the table, the Trump-Vance administration is using people’s basic needs as pawns in a political game,” CEO Skye Perryman said in a statement. “Our team is prepared to file a lawsuit to protect people and challenge this abuse of power.”
