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The federal shutdown could prevent November SNAP funding. In Southeast Ohio, community leaders are prepared to help.
By: Amanda Pirani
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB/Report for America) — When Kyra Gleckler heard about the impending disruptions to SNAP starting Sunday, she felt called to take action.
“I myself have been on SNAP before when I was a single parent,” she said. “It’s something kids are going to suffer from and they don’t have anything to do with it.”
So she made a Facebook post, asking if anyone would be interested in collecting donations or cooking community meals.
Five days later, a group of about 20 volunteers gathered to brainstorm. Gleckler said they’ve already received enough donations to form a small nonprofit called Guernsey County Community Growth.
The group will put together food distribution boxes for community members and bags to send home with local students.
Gleckler is one of many community leaders throughout southeast Ohio mobilizing to support those at risk of soon going without SNAP benefits.
If the ongoing federal shutdown continues into November, SNAP recipients will not see new benefits loaded onto their accounts, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Those with a remaining balance in will still be able to access those funds.
While the Trump administration said last week it could not continue to fund SNAP during the shutdown, several state leaders suing the federal government disagree.
In the meantime, Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order Thursday providing $7 million in extra funding to food banks in order to support emergency food assistance programs.
Community organizations, food banks prepared to help
In southeast Ohio’s counties, 10% to 25% of residents rely on SNAP. Nationwide, one in eight use the program to help pay for their groceries.
President of Athens County Food Pantry Karin Bright said most people know someone who counts on SNAP to feed their family.
“People don’t wave their banner and say ‘I’m receiving SNAP benefits,’” she said. “You just don’t know what people are living through.”
Without SNAP, food pantries and nonprofits are preparing to see a spike in need from their communities.
Southeast Ohio Foodbank Director Alicia Miklos said the organization will use flexible grant funding to increase its food purchasing this month, but an increase in community donations will also be critical.
“For every one meal provided by the charitable food system, SNAP provides nine meals,” she said. “It’s a gap that we will not be able to fill completely.”
In Guernsey County, Alissa Kovack, president of nonprofit kitchen Feed My People, said in an email her team is ready to double or triple offerings if necessary.
“At Feed My People we are now serving around 200 meals a day,” she wrote. “If SNAP benefits lapse our meals served will go up exponentially.”
Local food establishments are also stepping up. In Athens, Hotbox Chicken will provide free meals upon the presentation of a SNAP card.
In Logan, The Feed Family Restaurant is collecting donations for a dry goods pantry, in addition to the hot meals it’s provided to those in need since 2022.
“We wanted to try to figure out a way to take it a step further, to where anybody could just come in and we would have a small, shelf-stable food pantry in our entryway,” said owner Chelsee Roley.
Food banks face less federal funding
The moment comes as food banks are already trying to do more with less, according to Joree Novotny, director of the Ohio Association of Foodbanks.
“We’re approaching this shutdown at a time when our supplies are lower on our shelves in the emergency feeding network,” she said. “There’s some uncertainty … for state agencies tasked with administering these programs.”
That shortage in supplies is the result of a stagnation in federal funding, which Novotny said could be addressed by a piece of legislation known as the farm bill.
It provides funding for nutrition assistance programs like SNAP, as well as agricultural commodities and research, and is typically passed every five years. A new farm bill hasn’t been passed since 2018.
One important piece of the farm bill for food banks is the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP).
Instead of passing a farm bill that could provide consistent funds to programs like TEFAP, Congress has funded the program through continuing resolutions, making it vulnerable to funding cuts like those seen in March of this year.
Food banks also previously received additional relief when markets were under duress, or during trade disputes, through the USDA and executive authority. Novotny said those avenues for additional products have not been made available in recent years.
Food banks provide food supplies and grants to food pantries and emergency meal programs. When they have less funding available, it has downstream impacts.
In Zanesville, Eastern Community Ministry emergency relief manager Ashley Newton said the organization used to purchase most of its products through the Mid-Ohio food bank.
Those food supplies are purchased in bulk, and tend to be cheaper. Now, Newton said they rely more on local grocery stores due to funding cuts.
In light of the federal shutdown, some state lawmakers called on the Ohio Legislature to utilize emergency funding from the state’s budget stabilization fund to keep SNAP payments flowing. Legislation authorizing the spending was voted down in the Ohio Senate on Wednesday.
DeWine said he did not think the budget stabilization fund could be used for the state’s SNAP program. Instead, the $7 million his executive order allocates to state food banks will come from state Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds.
Additionally, the order will use up to $18 million in TANF funding to double payments for families receiving payments under Ohio Works First so long as SNAP benefits are disrupted. The program provides financial assistance to some families living under 50% of the federal poverty level.
Those facing food insecurity can call 211 or use FreshTrak.com to locate a nearby food pantry.