Delaware joins coalition suing over SNAP benefits

Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings joined a coalition of 22 other attorneys general and three governors Oct. 28, in filing a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture and its Secretary Brooke Rollins for suspending the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which helps more than 40 million Americans buy food, due to the ongoing federal government shutdown.

“Let me put this simply: If SNAP benefits do not go out next month, our state’s food banks will be overwhelmed, and thousands of Delawareans will go hungry,” said Jennings in a statement. “That cannot happen. The Trump administration has both a moral and a legal obligation to prevent that from happening – and they can do so whenever they wish.”

Gov. Matt Meyer said in a statement that 120,000 Delawareans will lose SNAP benefits Nov. 1, and he stands with Jennings and other governors in urging the court to restore SNAP funding immediately and protect access to food for every family that needs it.

The new federal fiscal year began Oct. 1, without an appropriation by Congress to fund the federal government, creating a government shutdown. USDA sent a letter to state SNAP agencies Oct. 10, saying that if the shutdown continues, there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits for about 42 million individuals across the country who rely on them.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution Sept. 19 to keep the government programs such as SNAP funded, but the resolution has stalled in the Senate after more than a dozen votes. Only three Democrats or Independents, including Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, voted for the continuing resolution Oct. 28 in its 54-45 defeat. A total of 60 votes is needed for it to pass. Delaware Democrat Sens. Chris Coons and Lisa Blunt Rochester voted against it.

In a CSPAN interview Oct. 23, Coons said the shutdown is principally a fight over increasing healthcare benefits under the Affordable Care Act.

“Republicans control the House, the Senate and the White House,” he said. “Frankly, this is our only moment of leverage, and although [it’s] a very unpleasant tool to use, it’s gotten us focused on what we have to do to change direction on healthcare.”

In an Oct. 27 news release, Coons said Democrats are willing to discuss healthcare options, but negotiations have stalled due to a lack of trust and communication among congressional leaders.

As for SNAP benefits, Jennings said despite USDA’s claim of insufficient funds, the agency has access to billions of dollars in SNAP-specific contingency funds appropriated by Congress for this very purpose. Furthermore, she said, USDA has funded other programs with emergency funds during this shutdown, but has refused to fund SNAP, leaving millions of Americans without the assistance. 

Jennings said thousands of Delawareans stand to be without benefits in the coming days. An average of 119,000 people receive SNAP benefits in Delaware each month, which includes about 60,000 families and 45,000 children, officials said, representing about 11% of Delawareans.

States are responsible for administering programs with federal funds, Jennings said, and suspending SNAP benefits in this manner is both contrary to law, and arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act. 

Providing SNAP benefits should continue even during a government shutdown, Jennings said. USDA does not have the authority to say otherwise, she said. The coalition is also expected to file a temporary restraining order Oct. 29, asking the court to immediately turn benefits back on, she said.

Joining Jennings in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin, and governors of Kansas, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.