Food stamps for millions of Americans become pawn in shutdown fight
As the partial government shutdown extends into its third week, the Department of Agriculture won't say how long it can keep paying out food stamp benefits for the nearly 39 million people who depend on the program each month.
Senior administration officials said last week they think the program has enough money for January, but not enough to cover all benefits in February, a scenario that could lead to a major cutback in benefits for millions of recipients.
The USDA, which administers the food stamp program, has declined to answer questions about its reserves and would not provide an estimate of when the program would run out of funding.
Nearly two-thirds of SNAP participants are children, elderly, or people with a disability, according to the most recent data available from USDA. The average gross income for households that received SNAP assistance was $813 per month in 2016.
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/01/07/food-stamps-government-shutdown-1062090
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