As the government shutdown continues, approximately 42 million people—about 1 in 8 Americans—may experience cuts or delays in their food assistance starting this Saturday. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly referred to as food stamps, is crucial for low-income Americans, providing essential funds for groceries. The program disburses over $90 billion in benefits annually, accounting for nearly 9 percent of total grocery spending in the United States, as per estimates from the Agriculture Department.
The federal government has indicated that it will be unable to fund the SNAP program for November due to the ongoing shutdown. However, on Thursday, a federal judge suggested she might mandate the release of some funds for SNAP. Even if some benefits are released, delays are expected, leaving many uncertain about who will face reductions or complete loss of their grocery budget next month.
SNAP is designed to assist households with low or no income from the previous month. Notably, a significant portion of SNAP recipients are children, individuals over 60, or adults with disabilities. In 2023, around 20 percent of SNAP participants reported having no income in the prior month. Most others earned less than 130 percent of the poverty level, which is approximately $2,900 monthly for a family of three in 2025.
“We’re very likely to see people making some really impossible decisions,” cautioned Katie Bergh, a senior policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a progressive think tank. She highlighted the difficult choices individuals may face, such as whether to delay utility payments or cut back on medications.
SNAP usage is particularly prevalent among households with children, those with a disabled adult, and families living in poverty, as indicated by Census data. Additionally, Black, Hispanic, and Native American households are more likely to depend on SNAP benefits. The loss of these benefits could significantly impact their grocery budgets, possibly eliminating more than half of what these households typically spend on food. Research from the Agriculture Department shows that SNAP covers an average of 63 percent of participants’ grocery costs, rising to 80 percent for households earning below 50 percent of the poverty line.
The effects of potential cuts to SNAP will not be immediate; benefits are distributed throughout the month, with different states employing various methods for determining disbursement dates. As the shutdown drags on, more individuals will likely see their benefits reduced, delayed, or completely eliminated. While SNAP is most frequently utilized in lower-income areas, recipients can be found in every congressional district across the country, including affluent regions such as Silicon Valley and Manhattan.
This unprecedented potential loss of food assistance is unlike anything seen in U.S. history. While past shutdowns have seen smaller groups lose access to SNAP—such as immigrants or those not meeting work requirements—the entire program has never been paused. Georgetown University economist Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach, an expert in anti-poverty initiatives, referred to SNAP as “the backbone” of the U.S. social safety net for combating hunger.
In light of the federal government's inability to fund November benefits due to Congress not authorizing funds for the fiscal year starting October 1, some states, including Louisiana, New Mexico, and Vermont, are taking measures to partially cover SNAP benefits with state funds. Other states, such as Colorado, Connecticut, and Maryland, are directing additional resources to food banks. However, food banks are not equipped to fill the gap left by SNAP.
According to Feeding America, a nonprofit network of food banks and pantries, SNAP typically provides nine meals for every one meal distributed by these organizations. Already strained by rising food prices, food banks are facing a mounting crisis. “We’re facing multiple emergencies at the same time,” stated Radha Muthiah, CEO of the Capital Area Food Bank, which supplies over 60 million meals annually in the D.C. metro area.
With demand at the food bank having doubled since the pandemic, the need for food assistance has surged, particularly as federal workers begin to miss paychecks due to the shutdown. Muthiah noted that the Capital Area Food Bank could only meet about 20 percent of the region's food need if SNAP benefits are lost. “This is not a distant problem,” she emphasized. “People you know, people in your neighborhood, people in your metro car will be impacted. Look out for your neighbors if you can.”
