This story was originally published by the Louisiana Illuminator.
Nearly 800,000 people who depend on federal food aid will see no interruption in those benefits for November, according to Gov. Jeff Landry.
They include the elderly, disabled and families with children who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which the Trump administration has said will not provide benefits starting Saturday amid the ongoing federal government shutdown.
But another 53,000 “able-bodied” SNAP recipients who aren’t in one of those categories will have to lean on their local food banks as long as the shutdown persists, according to the governor.
Landry said at a news conference Wednesday his health department will find the money to cover $147 million in benefits next month for the elderly, disabled and children. These recipients typically get their SNAP disbursements on the first few days of the month.
As for other recipients, the governor said he would provide more details Thursday on a plan to ensure food banks are able to meet their needs.
“We’ve been talking to the food banks over the last week about what it will take to bulk up supplies, to charge up the supply chain of getting more food to the food banks to prepare for families. They’re in that process,” Louisiana Health Secretary Bruce Greenstein told reporters after the governor’s news conference.
The governor’s plans do not mesh with earlier statements from Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, who had indicated benefits would be provided to all Louisiana SNAP recipients.
Henry told reporters earlier in the day that while the elderly, children and disabled would get food assistance first, other SNAP participants would get theirs through the remainder of the month. He did acknowledge that Landry has final say in how the state spends the money.
Henry and House Speaker Phillip DeVillier, R-Eunice, stood at the governor’s side at the news conference where he laid out his plans for SNAP benefits disbursement.
Henry and state lawmakers had just concluded a one-week special session Thursday to move back 2026 congressional primary election dates. Before adjourning, they approved a resolution to support Landry’s use of a reserve revenue fund for SNAP benefits if the impasse in Washington, D.C., extends into December. Henry said the legislature’s action wasn’t necessary for the governor to use the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund, which has a balance of about $2 billion.
The legislative resolution faced no opposition as it went through the approval process until Wednesday, when Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, voted against it. Morris told senators that while he did not take issue with their support for the measure, he feels there is a “gun being pointed to our head by the federal government.”
“This is not our program,” Morris said before the vote. “If you step back and look at it from a distance, it’s ridiculous that we are being forced to bail out the largest source of wealth in the world … the United States government. I think it sets a bad precedent.”
While Morris kept his arguments party neutral, Sen. Valarie Hodges, R-Denham Springs, laid blame for the government shutdown at the feet of U.S. Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. The New York Democrat is willing to let veterans and children go hungry rather than compromise, she said. Her comments were similar to those later in the day from the governor, who referenced the “Schumer Shutdown” and said he would be responsible for any problems Louisiana had in dispersing its food benefits.
Congressional Democrats say they will not vote to reopen the government unless Republicans agree to extend subsidies for health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act, which expire at the end of the year.
In response to Hodges’ remarks, Henry provided a rundown of the number of SNAP recipients in the districts of Democratic and Republican senators. All fell in the 20,000 range.
“If you’re trying to put Ds and Rs on this, it ain’t gonna work,” Henry said.
Both chambers also approved nonbinding resolutions that urge Congress to end the federal government shutdown and refund the money Louisiana spends on SNAP benefits.
A leaked memo from the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicates states that step in to cover federal food assistance will not be reimbursed.
Landry was asked if he thinks the federal government will eventually reimburse Louisiana for providing a bridge while SNAP benefits are suspended. The governor said he had spoken recently to U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise, both of Louisiana, who he said agreed that the state’s costs should be covered.
“The question is, right now, we can’t get Democrats in the Senate to agree on anything,” Landry said.
