The state is preparing to issue full SNAP benefits for November to the 440,000 Minnesotans enrolled in wake of a federal court ruling ordering existing federal funds to be directed to the program.
The Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) in a statement said that the food aid will be available as soon as this weekend. A U.S. District Court judge in Rhode Island on Thursday said the Trump administration must use SNAP reserve funds plus an additional pot of money with customs receipts to support the program amid the ongoing federal government shutdown, which is now the longest in U.S. history.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday issued a memo that it would comply with that federal order and begin the process of making those funds available, just as the Justice Department sought to block that decision. But late Friday evening, an appeals court left that order in place.
“As the longest shutdown in U.S. history concludes its sixth week, we are incredibly grateful Minnesotans will soon have access to their food benefits thanks to important legal system updates,” Tikki Brown, the agency commissioner, said in a statement. “When food support disappears, the consequences for Minnesota are immediate and far-reaching. It impacts public health, the state and local economies, education, and workforce stability.”
The department will issue benefits to households currently approved to receive SNAP and the Minnesota Family Investment Program payments, which may mean some will get them sooner than normal.
Jason Viana, executive director of The Open Door, a food pantry in Eagan, said the back-and-forth in court and the prolonged standstill in Congress are leaving families in limbo. He said his organization hasn’t seen this many people come through their doors seeking help since the start of the pandemic.
“I think the challenge with all the news stories and the rulings and the judge orders is it’s just uncertain, and that uncertainty is what breeds anxiety and families that need food aren’t sure if they’re going to be able to get it,” he told WCCO in an interview Friday.
The Open Door has seen double the number of walk-ins and triple the number of requests from partners like schools and counties over the last several weeks. The shutdown is the longest on record at 37 days and counting with no clear end in sight.
Since funding for SNAP lapsed, The Open Door has received a surge and donations. DFL Gov. Tim Walz also directed $4 million in emergency funding to food shelves that Viana said organizations like his just received.
But that support only goes so far.
“Food shelves alone cannot fill the gap that families are facing so it helps, and we’re grateful, but it’s still not going to get us to where we need to be,” he said.
Late Friday, Hennepin County also approved $2 million for food banks and food shelves through the end of the year.
Caroline Cummings
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