PHOENIX — The government shutdown is halting a critical federal food assistance program that serves 15% of Arizona’s residents, according to the latest state figures.
In September, 855,273 Arizonans received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, according to the Department of Economic Security, which administers the program.
That works out to about 1 in every 10 adults and 1 in every 4 kids. In some families, only children qualify for SNAP, also known as food stamps.
Several people who visited a DES office in Phoenix on Monday told ABC15 they hadn't heard SNAP benefits were on hold because of the shutdown.
"It was a shock to me," one woman said. "I was kind of really shocked. Nobody told me, nobody."
In general, rural Arizona families are more dependent on SNAP. More than half of the families in two rural counties – Apache and Gila – get assistance.
The percentage of families on SNAP is much lower in other counties, with Mohave and Santa Cruz counties having the lowest.
In September, SNAP delivered about $155 million in aid to Arizonans, with the average family getting almost $360, or about $180 per person.
Hobbs to Trump administration: Use contingency money
Meanwhile, Gov. Katie Hobbs is asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture to pay SNAP benefits through its contingency fund.
“Vulnerable Arizonans cannot afford to be used as leverage by Washington Republicans,” she wrote. “It’s appalling that this administration is choosing to take food out of the hands of Arizona families.”
USDA told Arizona on Oct. 10 to pause SNAP for November because of the shutdown, but DES didn't tell the public until Oct. 23 after ABC15 asked.
Her spokesperson later told ABC15 the agency needed time to get clarity on USDA's directive.
In a notice on its website Monday, the USDA said no SNAP benefits would be issued Nov. 1, blaming Senate Democrats for not voting for the continuing resolution to temporarily fund the government.
“Bottom line, the well has run dry,” the notice said.
Hobbs wrote in her letter that the Trump administration could “take action today” to ensure benefits continue to go out.
“Instead, they’re choosing to let seniors, children, veterans and families on the brink of crisis go hungry because of their political games,” she said. “President Trump must reverse this decision to withhold $6 billion of food assistance.”
The agency shutdown plan from late September did call for SNAP to continue during a shutdown, but the agency said in a memo last week that the contingency funds can only be spent with congressional approval, ABC News reported.
‘This is economy is crazy right now’
A steady stream of people visited a DES office in Phoenix on Monday for help with SNAP applications.
One man told me he had just been approved for SNAP after a recent layoff.
“I'm looking forward for those benefits for November, for the government to figure it out, because I need it in these hard times right now,” he said.
A single mother who just moved to Arizona from Alaska said she needs help feeding her children while she looks for work.
“I have a little bit left from last month, so (I’m) trying to save that until I can get some more,” she said.
She and her children left Alaska because they were close to homelessness, and she didn’t want her children out in the cold. Her children’s father lives in Arizona, and he’s helping, she said.
She didn’t know about the government shutdown and said she now has to figure out what to do next.
“Hopefully, they get their stuff together and ... think about the families that need it right now, because this economy is crazy right now,” she said.
