For many, the monthly food distribution that Aaron McNeil organizes is a lifeline, especially during the federal government shutdown and disruption of SNAP benefits.
The order on Friday temporarily blocked a lower court’s order that the Trump administration pay for a full month of food benefits, hours after some states began loading nutrition assistance funds on payment cards.
Aaron McNeil House, the Boys and Girls Club, Salvation Army, Hopkinsville Brewing Co. and others are preparing to feed people affected by the disruption in SNAP benefits.
In October, 645,461 used SNAP benefits to buy groceries in Kentucky. Those people are turning to food banks, which were already stretched thin in meeting the needs of a state with high rates of food insecurity and are now seeing even more visitors.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump walked back his administration’s plan to partially restore November food benefits during the ongoing government shutdown, saying on social media that payments through the SNAP would resume only when Democrats agree to reopen the government.
