Yes, food stamps could run out during a government shutdown

UPDATE: Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed a temporary spending bill to keep federal government agencies open through Nov. 17. The original story appears as published below:

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) are the two major food stamp programs in the United States. The programs help more than 40 million needy people across the country buy food.

State and local authorities administer food stamp programs, but the federal government is responsible for funding them.

Some people are wondering how a looming government shutdown, which would begin Oct. 1 if a new budget bill isn’t passed and signed into law, could affect food stamp benefits.

THE QUESTION

Could food stamp benefits run out during a government shutdown?

THE SOURCES

• Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
• Actions by Trump Administration’s USDA during 2018-2019 government shutdown
• Center for American Progress, a progressive policy think tank
• Congresswoman Emilia Sykes (D-OH)
• Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a non-profit that focuses on fiscal policy issues

THE ANSWER

Yes, WIC and SNAP benefits could run out during a government shutdown.

WHAT WE FOUND

Depending on the program and the state, WIC and SNAP funding could run out in as little as a few days to as long as a month if the government shuts down, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which oversees both programs. 

The Center for American Progress, a progressive policy think tank, says programs with contingency funds, such as WIC and SNAP, can continue to make payments until the contingency funds are exhausted.

However, the contingency funds for SNAP and WIC are not large enough to keep the programs continuously funded in the event of a long shutdown.

WIC

The WIC program’s funding stops “immediately when the shutdown occurs,” Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said in a Sept. 25 press briefing. When people see the end of WIC benefits depends on where they live.

“We have a contingency fund at USDA that might continue it for a day or two. Some states may have leftover WIC benefits that have not been spent, which could extend it for a week or so in that state,” Vilsack said. “But the vast majority of WIC participants would see an immediate reduction and elimination of those benefits, which means the nutrition assistance that’s provided would not be available.”

SNAP

SNAP will continue “at least for the month of October,” Vilsack said. But there would be “some serious consequences to SNAP” if the shutdown continued past October, he said.

Congresswoman Emilia Sykes (D-OH) introduced legislation on Sept. 21 that would give the SNAP reserve fund three months of funding so benefits can continue in the event of a prolonged shutdown. As of Sept. 26, the bill has not passed.

SNAP and WIC during the last shutdown

SNAP and WIC benefits remained available the last time the government shut down, which was between Dec. 22, 2018 and Jan. 25, 2019. That’s because during the 2018-2019 shutdown, there was also a special funding bill that allowed certain programs, including SNAP, to be funded for 30 days, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and the USDA. The USDA issued February SNAP benefits early, on Jan. 20, so it could use those guaranteed funds to pay for February’s benefits.

The USDA was also able to keep WIC benefits from running out during that shutdown. That’s because it had unspent funds from the previous year that it was able to use.

Resources if funding runs out 

If you have questions about how the government shutdown may affect SNAP and WIC in your state, you should contact your state or local SNAP or Food and Nutrition Service office. The USDA has a list of state SNAP offices and WIC contacts.

Feeding America, a national hunger-relief organization, has a page to help people find local food banks or other programs for free or low-cost food and groceries.