COLUMBUS, Ohio — More than a million Ohioans may have a tougher time putting food on the table after Halloween and they’re waiting to see what’s going to happen to their snap benefits if the government shutdown continues.
The democratic party is sounding the alarm and they said 1.4 million Ohioans are at risk of losing their snap benefits.
Republican leaders said they’re concerned, but solving the situation is complicated because snap is a federal program.
And lawmakers always begin each session with a prayer, but democrats said today’s is a much needed one. If the government shutdown continues, the federal government won’t be making snap payments starting November 1st.
“The funding is there, it’s there in unclaimed funds, emergency funds that could be allocated immediately through the governor in the legislature,” State Rep. Dani Isaacsohn (D) minority leader said. “We have a Rainy Day Fund, when this many kids when 200,000 seniors are hungry, when 45,000 veterans are not gonna be able to eat, it’s raining in Ohio.”
Republican leaders said they’re also concerned, but it’s not that simple for the state to cover federal dollars.
“I think everybody acknowledges that even if we said, here’s $270 million, we don’t have any way to administer that to the snap benefits,” State Rep. Matt Huffman (R) house speaker said. “This is a federal program, and you know we and by the way it’s not a situation where we’re going to get paid the money back so that’s not an option for us.”
Yet democratic leaders are calling for Ohio’s general assembly and the governor to act.
“A great leader is going to figure out how to feed these kids and how to feed families across Ohio, not why we can’t feed them,” Isaacsohn said.
Governor Mike DeWine recently told Spectrum News 1 he is concerned and that he would have to look at whether the state can use the Ohio Rainy Fund in a situation like this.
For now there is still a lot of uncertainty about what’s about to happen, not only for Snap beneficiaries but also for the women, infants and children who rely on WIC, another federal program.
The republican speaker of the house is calling on food services around the state, he said foodbanks, religious and private groups can step in to help.
“I’m not naïve enough to believe that all of that can make up for what we have in the Snap benefits,” Huffman said. “So I’m hoping that when it comes to these critical services that you know at least the democratic senate members in the United States senate can approve the Snap benefits.”