Some states have warned that families who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, may soon miss out on benefits due to the federal government shutdown.
“Starting October 16, SNAP benefits will not be paid until the federal government shutdown ends and funds are released to PA,” according to a notice on Pennsylvania’s state website dated Oct. 17. The Texas Health and Human Services site notes, “SNAP benefits for November won’t be issued if the federal government shutdown continues past Oct. 27.”
Nevada, North Dakota, New Jersey and New York, among others, have issued similar announcements about potential delays or missed benefits.
A pop-up notice on New Jersey’s Department of Human Services site also noted that “it is unclear if SNAP benefits loaded on your Families First EBT card prior to October 31, 2025 will be able to be used after November 1, 2025.”
The SNAP program, formerly known as food stamps, is run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and provides basic assistance to more than 40 million people. For families in need, local food banks are often the next line of defense. However, these nonprofits are also under pressure as federal funding remains on hold. For those families already stretched too thin, experts say, the gap could cause significant hardship.
The USDA did not immediately return a request for comment.
Due to provisions in President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful” reconciliation package, the federal food stamps program was facing “the largest cut to SNAP in history,” according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Some of those benefit cuts and new eligibility requirements are already going into effect as states implement Trump’s legislation.
Those changes will cause 22.3 million families to lose some or all of their SNAP benefits, the Urban Institute, a nonpartisan provider of policy research, estimated in a July report.
Local food banks left to bridge the gap
Recent and upcoming cuts to SNAP, along with the current funding freeze as the shutdown stretches into the third week, put additional strain on local food banks and nonprofits, which are often needed to fill the gap in communities when federal assistance falls short.
Many of these organizations rely on federal grant aid to run their operations, and some of that funding is now delayed. Due to a lapse in appropriations, nonprofits are also facing a potential shortfall, said Sarah Saadian, senior vice president of public policy and campaigns at the National Council of Nonprofits, an industry association.
“The longer it continues, the harder it is for nonprofits to continue services in their communities,” Saadian said of the partisan battle in Washington. “Most nonprofits are small and have limited budgets that they stretch and try to make work; they are not sitting on a large cushion of resources.”
‘We may not be able to meet that emergency need’
At Michigan Community Action, which is an anti-poverty organization that supports food, transportation, child care and housing assistance agencies throughout the state, operations are in a “wait-and-see mode,” according to Brian McGrain, the executive director.
“If [SNAP] benefits go unfunded, where are people going to turn? We know that a wave could be coming and we may not be able to meet that emergency need,” McGrain said.
In Michigan, the prevalence rate of food insecurity in recent years has been about 13%, just above the national average of 12.2%. As with many local nonprofits, “we typically dip into our own emergency reserves, but if the shutdown continues, it’s going to be even more difficult,” McGrain said.
“The uncertainty around the SNAP benefits will continue to put a strain on our food banks,” said Kelley Kuhn, president and CEO of the Michigan Nonprofit Association. But it’s a “double whammy,” she added.
Organizations that address food insecurity will be “immediately impacted as a result of the government shutdown,” Kuhn said — just when there is “an increase in demand for those services.”