Hunger Free Vermont Applauds State Action to Protect 3SquaresVT Households Amid Federal Funding Lapse
Hunger Free Vermont strongly supports the Emergency Board’s decision to use state funding to issue two weeks of benefits to all 3SquaresVT households and to allocate $250,000 to the Vermont Foodbank to directly support food shelves and pantries meeting immediate community needs. Food security is a policy choice, and Vermont continues its legacy of choosing it with this decision.
It’s important for people to know that November 3SquaresVT benefits will be delayed. The state has stepped in to cover the lapse in federal funding by issuing 50% of each household’s monthly benefit amount, but the state needs time to reprogram its systems to load these funds, so benefits will not be available on the usual schedule.
According to DCF, 50% of your usual monthly amount will be available by November 7. If the lapse in federal funding continues, the state will reconvene on November 13 to determine next steps and will plan to issue the remaining 50% of benefits if needed. If you still have funds on your EBT card from previous months, those can be used as normal.
Hunger Free Vermont decries the inaction of the USDA to issue federal SNAP funds to the 40 million Americans enrolled in the program. We applaud Vermont leaders for stepping up to fill this gap, but our federal government has a fundamental responsibility to meet its citizens basic needs and no state should be scrambling because of federal inaction.
Two-thirds of the federal money needed to fund November benefits for all 40 million Americans is available to USDA right now, through a contingency fund. There are other funds that USDA can legally tap to cover the rest of the benefits, but they are choosing not to do this. We commend Attorney General Clark and Governor Scott for sending a clear message by joining 24 other states and the District of Columbia in suing the USDA: withholding SNAP benefits is inhumane and illegal.
The bottom line is that this has been and will continue to be an unprecedented and deeply stressful time for families across Vermont. 10% of our state population who expected to have reliable access to 3SquaresVT benefits to buy groceries will not receive those on time–this impacts every single 3SquaresVT participant, most of whom are older adults, people with disabilities, and children. Thanks to the leadership and action of State Legislative leaders, members of the Emergency Board, and Governor Scott’s administration, some relief will come to families next week.
For individuals and businesses who have the time and ability to support local food shelves and pantries, we encourage you to act now. Many families are beginning to pay heating bills, did not plan for a delay in receiving their benefits, and simply do not have the money to stretch their budgets right now. As a result, many food shelves urgently need food donations and may not have time to use cash donations to purchase groceries. If you can drop off food at your local food shelf, please do. If that’s not possible, a financial contribution still provides critical support. And if you’re unable to give food or funds, you can still make a meaningful difference by sharing this information with your community—on social media, by email, or on Front Porch Forum. Hunger Free Vermont will continue to share timely updates at hungerfreevt.org and on Instagram at instagram.com/hungerfreevt.
