Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said the state will fund November food aid for children, the elderly or disabled who receive food stamps as the federal government shutdown drags on.
Landry and Legislative leaders announced the plan to secure funding from the Louisiana Department of Health during an Oct. 29 press conference.
That means about 800,000 Louisiana residents will receive their November Supplemental Food Assistance Program benefits as Thanksgiving approaches.
SNAP is a federally funded program that is administered by each state.
Landry issued an emergency declaration on Oct. 24 as it became clear the government shutdown wouldn’t end in time for the state to receive its federal money to fund SNAP.
Landry’s declaration was accompanied by the Legislature’s resolution to direct the state health department to fund the program with $150 million.
About 17% of Louisiana’s population relies on SNAP benefits, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.
Legislative leaders said they will backfill the health department appropriation with funding from the state’s Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund, which currently has $2.7 billion.
They hope that Congress will reimburse the state when the government reopens, though the USDA has said it won’t reimburse states that fund SNAP on their own.
“Those are dollars already factored into the federal budget,” Louisiana House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jack McFarland said in an interview with USA Today Network. “There’s no guarantee, but we’ll work with our congressional delegation.”
Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.
