Beshear joins 24 states in challenge over Trump administration’s suspension of SNAP benefits
FRANKFORT, Ky. (ABC36 NEWS NOW) – Gov. Andy Beshear says the Trump administration’s decision to suspend food assistance during the federal government shutdown is “unlawful,” joining 24 other states and the District of Columbia in demanding that the move be reversed.
According to a release from the governor’s office, Beshear and other state leaders are challenging the administration’s suspension of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides grocery assistance to low-income families. The governor said the halt will leave nearly 600,000 Kentuckians — many of them children — without food assistance.
“Our President should be focused on fighting hunger, not causing it,” Beshear said in the release. “The unlawful suspension of SNAP benefits is going to cause more than 40 million Americans and almost 600,000 Kentuckians – many of which are children – to go without food.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) notified state SNAP agencies on October 24 that all November benefit payments would be suspended until federal funding is restored. The release says the decision affects approximately 42 million people nationwide who depend on SNAP benefits each month.
Beshear said the USDA has access to “billions of dollars in SNAP-specific contingency funds” that were appropriated by Congress to ensure benefits could continue during funding lapses. The release also says USDA has used emergency funds to cover other programs during the shutdown but has “refused to fund SNAP.”
The governor said Kentucky will continue working with other states to push for the immediate restoration of food assistance.
