U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) joined an effort to keep food benefits flowing to nearly 690,000 Tennesseans as the federal government shutdown drags on.
Tennessee officials rang the alarm bell on the situation last week with a brief memo online. The Tennessee Department of Human Services (TDHS) said it received notification from the U.S. Department of Agriculture USDA that federally-funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for November will be unavailable if the shutdown persists.
Shelby County would be hardest hit if SNAP benefits do not arrive. In September, 152,265 people here relied on SNAP benefits for food. These benefits typically total around $33 million each month in Shelby County. The missing funds could also mean a monthly $33 million hole in the local economy as those without food assistance will be less able to shop at area grocery stores.
Blackburn, who is also a Tennessee gubernatorial candidate, announced Monday morning that she joined a group of Republican lawmakers to co-sponsor the Keep SNAP Funded Act. The bill would fully fund SNAP “during the Democrats’ government shutdown.”
“Roughly one in 10 Tennesseans receive SNAP benefits for food assistance, and they shouldn’t have to worry about where their next meal will come from because the Democrats are holding government funding hostage to appease their far-left base,” Blackburn said in a statement. “Our Keep SNAP Funded Act would ensure Tennesseans do not miss a meal during the Democrats’ shutdown.”
The bill would offer back payment for anytime from the end of September to whenever the bill is passed. So it would make whole any SNAP benefit payments missed by any recipient.
The bill comes as lawmakers wrangled last week to patch the problem before it arrived.
U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Memphis) asked Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee to use state emergency funds, sometimes called “rainy day funds,” to extend SNAP benefits to Tennesseans. Though state coffers now hold more than $2 billion in emergency funds, Lee said he could not help.
”The SNAP program is federally funded and operated, and Tennessee is unable to utilize state dollars to provide the benefit, as states do not have a mechanism to load benefits onto customer cards,” Lee’s office said in a statement.
Lee took the opportunity to jab Democrats who “continue to hold federal dollars hostage” and that he ”sincerely hope[s] Democrats will choose to put the American people ahead of politics and reopen the government now.”
The governor said he is working with members of the faith community and nonprofit partners “to ensure Tennessee families do not go hungry.”
However, TTDHS Commissioner Clarence Carter said, “We understand that this situation creates anxiety for many families, employees, and community partners who depend on the SNAP program, and when federal operations resume, we will be ready to act quickly.”
Last week, Tennessee House Democrats urged Lee to call a special session for a plan to deal with the looming cuts. They pointed to past sessions that focused on flood recovery, a megasite authority, his school voucher program, and to “criminalize peaceful protestors.”
”Standing idly by while children go hungry is simply not an option,” said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Rep. John Ray Clemmons (D-Nashville). ”The time to act is now.”
