By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
It’s still unclear whether the Trump Administration will extend SNAP benefits into November if the government shutdown continues, leaving 2.9 million New Yorkers unsure if they will receive food aid for next month.
In Cattaraugus County, 5,339, or 16.8% of the county’s 31,822 households aren’t sure whether their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program allotment will be available in November. That includes 2,102 households with kids, or about 6.6 percent of homes.
Allegany County has 2,575 households receiving SNAP benefits out of 17,077 homes. There are 811 homes, of 4.8% of homes with children receiving SNAP.
Average New York SNAP benefits are about $190 per month for individuals and $356 per household.
Earlier this week when Gov. Kathy Hochul told SNAP recipients the U.S. Department of Agriculture said states would be unable to distribute SNAP benefits in November if the government shutdown continued.
The independent Center on Budget and Priority Policy wrote the USDA could enable two-thirds payments for SNAP in November from contingency funds. Under that scenario, SNAP recipients would get about two-thirds of their monthly benefits.
The Trump Administration shifted available funds for the Women, Infants and Children program earlier this month, but has not indicated whether it will do the same with SNAP.
The House has not been in session since Sept. 19, while the Senate has been holding nearly daily votes to reopen the government.
Senate Democrats want Republicans to negotiate over restoring subsidies for Affordable Care Act premiums due to expire soon. Democrats also want Republicans to restore billions to Medicaid that was cut to provide tax cuts to billionaires.
Gov. Hochul noted that statewide, about 30% of children are in households receiving SNAP benefits, 21% are elderly and 10% are disabled.
In the 23rd Congressional District 31% of the recipients are children, 17% are elderly and 12% are disabled. The SNAP payments in the district total more than $200 million.
When the economic activity the SNAP benefits spark are added, the annual benefits total more than $300 million to the Southern Tier and part of Erie County, Hochul pointed out.
There are 90,391 people in 51,563 households in the 23rd Congressional District receiving SNAP benefits.
