PHOENIX — The federal government told Arizona two weeks ago to pause food assistance for November because of the government shutdown – but Arizona didn’t tell the public until Thursday.
When asked on Friday why the public wasn’t told sooner, Gov. Katie Hobbs told ABC15: “I don't have information about that. I thought people knew about this.”
Arizona’s Department of Economic Security, which administers SNAP, also known as food stamps, told ABC15 on Thursday evening that payments for November would not go out, citing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s October 10 memo.
Hobbs’ spokesperson later told ABC15 the agency needed time to get clarity on the full implications of the memo before telling the nearly 1 million Arizonans who receive SNAP benefits.
“The Trump administration sent a confusing and unclear memo that sent states across the country scrambling to interpret,” he said in a statement.
In the Oct. 10 memo, the USDA told states “there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits” for the approximately 42 million Americans in the program. The agency also told states to “hold their November issuance files and delay transmission” to the companies that load funds onto SNAP recipients’ electronic cards “until further notice.”
In September 2015, USDA used similar language in a notice to states, but, in an update one week later that the Governor’s Office provided to ABC15, instructed states to send their files “without delay.”
When asked why they waited until Thursday to say SNAP payments in November wouldn’t go out, DES told ABC15 in a statement that they wanted to ensure they were providing accurate information to families.
“DES has been reviewing and assessing the federal government’s guidance and its implications, communicating and coordinating with other states, gathering legal interpretations of the instructions, and coordinating communication across multiple channels,” an agency spokesperson said.
Hobbs: Arizona doesn't have money to pay for SNAP benefits
So what happens now?
“We're going to really count on our nonprofit social service community to step up and be partners helping fill some of those gaps,” Hobbs said.
Hobbs said the state doesn’t have the money to pay for SNAP, which is federally funded but administered by the state.
“I don't have a pot of money just sitting there that I can use to fill these gaps,” she said.
Hobbs called on President Donald Trump to take the lead in ending the shutdown.
"Look, I don't think it's helpful to point fingers. I think that the president is the leader, and he should bring people to the table and make them negotiate," she said. "But this chaos in Washington, regardless of who's to blame, is harming Arizonans."
Republican state lawmakers point to Kelly, Gallego
Other states are taking action to help SNAP beneficiaries. In Colorado, Gov. Jared Polis has asked state lawmakers for $10 million to help food banks.
But in Arizona, the Republican leaders of the Legislature say this is a problem for the state’s two Democratic senators to help fix.
“This is a Democrat-caused shutdown,” Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen told ABC15 in a statement.“Arizona’s two U.S. Senators, Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego, voted to create this mess, and now Arizona families are paying the price. Arizonans deserve stability and leadership — not partisan gridlock. Our citizens should be calling on Kelly and Gallego to stop the obstruction and vote to reopen the government.”
“The answer is that Arizona’s Democrat Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego should vote to end the government shutdown now,” Andrew Wilder, spokesperson for the House’s Republican majority, also told ABC15.
The U.S. House passed legislation on September 18 to temporarily fund the federal government at existing levels. But the continuing resolution is stalled in the U.S. Senate.
"Arizona’s senators could provide two of the five votes needed to end the government shutdown,” U.S. Rep. Eli Crane, R-Congressional District 2, told ABC15. “Enough is enough.”
U.S. Sens. Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego both signed a letter Wednesday to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins asking USDA to use contingency funding and find other funds to pay for November’s SNAP benefits.
“We urge you to immediately communicate to states and committees of jurisdiction the USDA’s plans to disburse the contingency funding to state agencies and utilize all available legal authorities so that American families can get benefits without interruption,” they wrote.
