Amid Shutdown, McClellan, Roem and Advocates Call on USDA to Use Contingency Fund to Pay for November SNAP Benefits for Nearly 800,000 Virginians

Richmond, Va. — In response to communication from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that the agency does not have adequate funds to pay SNAP benefits for the full month of November due to the shutdown, U.S. Rep. Jennifer McClellan (VA-04) and Sen. Danica Roem (D-Prince William) on Wednesday joined advocates for a virtual press conference calling on USDA to tap into its contingency fund. They also urged the Trump Administration to find additional funding to ensure that SNAP benefits for nearly 800,000 Virginians are fully covered for the month. 

The Virginia Department of Social Services received a memo from USDA on October 10 requesting that states hold their SNAP files and delay transmission to state SNAP vendors until further notice.

USDA has a contingency fund that could be tapped to cover nearly two-thirds of November’s benefits nationally. The Administration can also use its discretionary authority to transfer funds to SNAP, as it did with WIC earlier this month, to cover any remaining gap. McClellan cosponsors Rep. Emilia Sykes’s (OH-13) H.R. 2016, the Feed Our Families Act, filed in March to ensure families supported by SNAP can continue to access their benefits up to three months after a shutdown occurs. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican leadership have prevented the bill from passing and refused to hold committee hearings or votes for over a month.

“Just within the last two weeks, President Trump announced a $20 billion bailout for his fellow ultra-right wing friend, Javier Milei, the president of Argentina,” said Congresswoman McClellan. “So instead of coming to the table to negotiate on a budget that lowers the cost of living for Americans and addresses the looming Republican-caused health care crisis, President Trump is rewarding foreign politicians who say nice things about him to the tune of billions of dollars. Congressional Democrats want to fund the government, and we have repeatedly asked Speaker Mike Johnson for over a month to gavel us back into session so that we can continue working on behalf of the American people. And now SNAP benefits are set to stop, even as the USDA has access to a $6 million contingency fund that they could tap into to keep them going. If there is somehow money to bail out right wing politicians in Argentina during our government shutdown, it’s clear we have the resources to ensure that American families don’t go hungry on Thanksgiving.”

“What am I supposed to tell my constituent right now who sent me that text message yesterday asking ‘what’s going to happen to the benefits in November’?” said Senator Roem. “What level of certainty do we have right now? November is coming up in 10 days. I don’t have an answer right now because we don’t know what the hell Congress is going to do. We don’t know what the president is going to do right now. Our families need certainty. We hear all the time about ‘Wall Street needs certainty in order to do blah, blah, blah.’ Our families who are hungry need certainty. Our families with people who have disabilities need certainty. Our constituents need certainty. That’s who we’re here to serve.”

“Historically, administrations have found ways to sustain SNAP during budget crises and shutdowns by using contingency funds, carryover appropriations and short-term adjustments,” said Emily Moore of Voices for Virginia’s Children. “That authority still exists. What’s missing right now is the willpower to prioritize families who depend on SNAP to get the nutrition they need, and that is why our call to action is clear. This is not a state issue. USDA must provide clear and actionable guidance to states before November 1 on how to handle SNAP allocations for the month of November. They must use contingency funds to prevent a gap in benefits. And members of Congress must communicate directly with USDA and the Administration about the urgency of this issue and must work to identify funding solutions that ensure that there are no gaps in benefits in SNAP for November and beyond.”

“No corner of Virginia is safe from interruptions in SNAP benefits,” said Rodrigo Soto of The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis. “In central Virginia, over 170,000 people relied on SNAP. For the eastern region, that number’s over 225,000 people. In the northern region, over 212,000 people are SNAP recipients. In Virginia’s Piedmont region, that is over 150,000 people enrolled in SNAP, and lastly, the western region has over 91,000 SNAP recipients. The impact will be real and devastating as families try to plan for the month of November … inaction is not an option as we approach this food crisis.” 

“Food-insecure families need certainty,” said Eddie Oliver of the Federation of Virginia Food Banks. “There’s nothing more anxiety-inducing than not knowing where your next meal is coming from, and the impacts on mental health and physical health will be significant if families have to contend with not getting these benefits on time. We stand ready to help any way we can. We want folks to reach out to a local pantry if you are in need of assistance, but we are certainly not confident that we’re going to be able to meet the demand that would occur if SNAP benefits do not go out on time next month, and so we stand with others who call for USDA to deploy these contingency funds, make sure families get the benefits they’re entitled to, because food is not optional.”

“Since June of this year, our pantry has added over 100 new families to the roll to be able to come and shop at our client choice pantry, and we also have a mobile distribution program that serves seniors and differently-abled folks,” said A.J. Young, director of outreach for the LIFEworks Project, which runs River City Bread Basket in Waynesboro. “It’s important to understand as well that we have served, or we continue to serve, regularly, over 500 folks a month, and that number continues to climb. It is going to be beyond challenging for folks who are coming to our pantry previously just to supplement what they get in terms of food, who will now be completely reliant upon our pantry for food. And we certainly hope that the USDA will release the $6 billion. That will certainly have an impact in a wonderful way, to be able to continue to provide the services that many of our clients have come to rely on in this season.” 

“I’m here to call on the federal government to do everything they can to make sure they are protecting SNAP this month for my family and for my four children,” said Ariele Robinson of Richmond. “I recently started a new job at a nursing agency taking care of older folks, and it still just isn’t enough to get by, even with SNAP. Every dollar is accounted for with all my bills — my rent, my insurance, my phone bill. Whenever I get an extra $20 or $30, it goes to food. I go to Dollar General and try to get noodles, things for like $1.25 to stock up. I was late re-certifying my SNAP this summer, so I know what it’s like to go without. I relied on food banks and on my church to feed my children. My church has an afterschool program that made sure my kids were fed. So if I did not get my benefits in November, I would go to my church, and I know they will help me, but I know there are also a lot of other families that they would have to help.”

“My partner and I work doing deliveries for Walmart through a service called Spark. But it’s not enough to make ends meet. We rely on SNAP and WIC a lot to feed ourselves, to feed our children,” said Audrey Cunningham, a mother of three from Bandy in Tazewell County. “We’re also going through a harder time right now because our van broke down. It’s in the shop, and we can’t do any deliveries right now. It’s really upsetting that we might not be getting our benefits in November. We are currently looking into food pantries for help, and we’re looking at cheaper options for food. We’re stocking up on packs of Ramen noodles, soups and canned vegetables. Normally, we don’t buy the cheaper foods like Ramen because they’re not as healthy, but we’re really just trying to stock up in case we don’t get our SNAP benefits next month.” 

“I’m speaking today on behalf of my uncle, who is 65 years old,” said Kisha Cain of Richmond. “I’m his caregiver, so I’m currently in the process of renewing his SNAP benefits, which come to $291 per month. For over 30 years, my uncle worked as a driver for different moving companies. Three years ago, he had a stroke that left him unable to work. He is in the process of applying for disability, but that can take a long time. So SNAP has been his only source of income, and at least it means he can have food. It’s also helpful because he’s a diabetic and has certain dietary needs that SNAP can help fill. It just really makes a difference that he has SNAP to make sure that he has enough food going month to month.” 

 Event Assets and News Coverage

• View a recording of the event HERE
• 13NewsNow: Virginia Democrats call for SNAP benefits funding as shutdown continues (full recording of event)
• Richmond Times-Dispatch: Virginia faces ‘crisis’ if shutdown disrupts food benefits
• WRIC: ‘Truly unprecedented’: Virginia lawmakers, advocates concerned SNAP funding may run out in November
• 12 On Your Side: Agencies warn SNAP benefits may not be issued in November amid government shutdown
• CBS6: Virginia food banks warn they can’t meet demand if SNAP benefits are delayed in November