Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers in Postindustrial Communities are urging their states to support food assistance amid the federal government shutdown.
Throughout Appalachia and the Midwest, we’ve seen leaders on the left and right urging their respective state governments to make up for food assistance shortfalls when SNAP benefits expire on Nov. 1.
Some Pennsylvania lawmakers are proposing grants to help food assistance programs offset the potential loss of federal SNAP benefits.
Under the proposed Pennsylvania Food and Hunger Relief Grant Program, $50 million in interest from the state’s rainy day fund would be directed to food banks, $10 million to Meals on Wheels Pennsylvania, and $2 million to the Department of Agriculture.
While significant, that funding represents only a fraction of the $360 million in monthly SNAP benefits currently supporting about 2 million Pennsylvanians—roughly 15 percent of the state’s population. Those benefits are expected to lapse starting in November if the federal government shutdown continues. Pennsylvania ranks ninth nationally in the share of residents who rely on SNAP.
In response to the federal suspension of benefits, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, along with 22 other state attorneys general and three governors, has filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Agriculture challenging the decision to halt SNAP payments for November.
Among the governors joining the suit is Kentucky’s Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, who has been increasingly viewed as a potential national contender.
[Check out Postindustrial’s take on Beshear’s political future here.]
“There are emergency funds sitting around that the president could use to fund the SNAP program,” Beshear said at a recent news conference. “All he has to do is be willing to do it.”
Meanwhile, in West Virginia, Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced the state would contribute up to $13 million to support its two central food banks. He urged residents to match the state’s contribution through donations.
[Read more about Gov. Morrisey’s call to action over SNAP here.]
And it’s not just state lawmakers. Leaders representing Postindustrial States on Capitol Hill are also concerned about their constituents going hungry amid their ongoing political battle.
Ohio’s two Republican US senators, frustrated by the potential suspension of food assistance for millions of Americans, have signed on to legislation to ensure Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits continue during the ongoing government shutdown.
Sens. Jon Husted and Bernie Moreno are supporting the Keep SNAP Funded Act, which would appropriate funding to maintain uninterrupted SNAP payments, retroactive to the start of the shutdown. The move follows warnings from Ohio officials that SNAP benefits may not be distributed beginning Nov. 1 if the shutdown persists.
Moreno continued to assign blame for the impasse to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, calling it “the Schumer shutdown.”
“The Schumer shutdown is already wreaking havoc on working-class Americans,” Moreno said in a statement. “Millions of Ohioans rely on SNAP to make ends meet—they shouldn’t be punished because Chuck Schumer and D.C. Democrats view them as ‘leverage’ in their political war against President Trump.”
Democrats reject that characterization, contending that Republicans caused the standoff and accusing the Trump administration of failing to use available resources to prevent a SNAP funding lapse.
Vice President JD Vance, also an Ohioan, said Republicans are exploring every option to keep essential programs funded but argued that Democratic cooperation remains the simplest solution.
“We’ve got food stamp benefits set to run out in a week,” Vance said. “We’re trying to keep as much open as possible. We just need the Democrats to actually help us out.”
