The US government will distribute 50% food relief funds, but the collection may face delays

The Trump administration in the United States will use emergency funds to maintain the distribution of half of the relief funds under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP for short) in November, but some states may need weeks or even months to resume the distribution.

Xinhua News Agency reported that the US federal government's "shutdown" entered its 34th day on the 3rd, just one day away from the historical record of the longest "shutdown" of 35 days. Due to the exhaustion of funds, the "Supplementary Nutrition Assistance Program" has suspended the distribution of relief funds since November 1st. This federal food relief program is supervised by the United States Department of Agriculture and spends over 8 billion US dollars each month.

This is the first time in the 60-year history of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that the relief funds have been suspended. Even during the federal government's "shutdown", the relief funds have never been suspended.

Deputy Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Payne said in a filing with the court on Monday (November 3) that the Department of Agriculture will use an emergency fund of 4.65 billion US dollars for the distribution of food relief funds in November, but it can only meet 50% of the current demand. Payne emphasized that the Department of Agriculture will not raise funds from other channels to make up for the funding gap of the "Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program".

Payne said that the Department of Agriculture is now providing states with detailed plans for calculating the portion of relief funds to be distributed to each household. However, due to "procedural difficulties", some states may need weeks or even months to complete all system changes in order to distribute the reduced relief funds.

As an important component of the US social security system, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program covers 42 million people, accounting for approximately one-eighth of the total population of the United States, the majority of whom have an income below the poverty line.

Payne's statement has raised concerns that "distant water cannot quench a nearby fire." Low-income people who rely on this project have no idea when they will be able to see the "reduced" relief funds credited to their debit cards used for purchasing food.

After the US Department of Agriculture announced on October 25 that it would soon stop distributing food relief funds, 25 Democratic-dominated states and the capital Washington filed a lawsuit, arguing that the federal government has a legal obligation to ensure the continued operation of this program. Some local governments, non-profit organizations and industry unions have also filed similar lawsuits.

A judge in the federal District Court of Rhode Island ruled on October 31 that the federal government must use emergency funds to maintain the "Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program" and required the federal government to provide an explanation on the project's funding situation no later than November 3.