Both Louisiana and Virginia have made it clear that a state of emergency can only keep SNAP going.
As the federal government shutdown stretches on, Louisiana and Virginia have both declared states of emergency to ensure that low-income residents continue to receive food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
“It’s a choice between using money that we have or people going hungry,” said Louisiana Senate President Cameron Henry. “That’s why we have the fund balances that we have.”
Advocates for low-income families applauded the action. “Kudos to the Legislature for making this a priority and stopping the disruption of the SNAP program,” said Jan Moller, executive director of Invest in Louisiana.
Virginia’s program will remain funded through October, but the governor pledged to launch an unprecedented state-backed plan on November 1 if federal payments are not restored. “The entire objective is for those Virginians who receive these benefits to not see a moment’s gap or any interruption,” he said.
With Congress deadlocked over government spending and healthcare subsidies, the federal impasse has left millions uncertain about access to essential programs like SNAP. “This is a shutdown of Republicans’ own making because they won’t fund the government unless they can rip healthcare away from millions of Americans,” said Rep. Jennifer McClellan, a Virginia Democrat.
As Washington continues to debate, both Louisiana and Virginia are taking matters into their own hands — using state dollars to make sure families don’t go hungry.
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Source: Black Enterprise
