Thousands of military families won’t receive federal food assistance next month as the government shutdown impacts funding to fight food insecurity.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said that it would not be issuing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits this month, due to the ongoing government shutdown. A partisan notice on the USDA’s website on Monday said funding had expired.
“Bottom line, the well has run dry. At this time, there will be no benefits issued November 01,” the notice says.
More than 40 million Americans rely on SNAP benefits, among them thousands of active-duty military members and their families. The benefits, which are funded by the federal government but operated by states, are sent monthly and provide vital assistance to military families struggling with the cost of living.
Military families, like their civilian counterparts, rely on the same social safety net, said Eileen Huck, deputy director of government relations for the National Military Family Association, a nonprofit.
The exact number of service members enrolled in SNAP isn’t clear. A Department of Defense report in 2020 noted that the number of troops getting SNAP benefits ranged between 880 and 4,620. A similar report published in 2015 put the number as high as 22,000 in 2012. The USDA’s own data found that a quarter of military personnel experience food insecurity. And many troops and military families that aren’t enrolled in SNAP also regularly use military food pantries and other food banks to deal with the cost of living.
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“The military families who rely on SNAP benefits are probably the most vulnerable in our community,” Huck said. “They’re predominantly younger families, junior enlisted troops, they’re families who are already struggling financially, and to lose these benefits is really going to put them at risk of severe hardship.”
The USDA has a contingency fund, but the department argues it cannot legally tap into it, only for emergencies such as natural disasters. Axios reported that a USDA plan from earlier this year about what to do in a shutdown did say it could tap into those contingency funds.
Huck noted that the loss of SNAP in November will have a “ripple effect.” Food banks will be facing a much higher demand from the wider populace, causing a “severe strain” and leaving military members and families who already rely on them having more trouble getting food.
Military food pantries are already seeing increased traffic. One nonprofit, Armed Services YMCA, told ABC News last week that it was seeing a rise in demand of 30% or more at its locations near bases.
The loss of SNAP benefits comes as military members face uncertainty over pay. As the shutdown continues, it’s not clear when troops can expect their next paycheck. The Department of Defense (and the Department of Homeland Security in the case of the Coast Guard) shifted “unobligated” funds to payroll in order to cover Oct. 15 paychecks. The legality of that use of money has been questioned. On Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CBS News that the U.S. won’t be able to pay troops on Nov. 15.
In addition to military pay, Huck noted that many military spouses often work in federal government jobs and the shutdown means that source of income is also gone, causing additional hardships on families. Official military charity organizations have been offering assistance through the shutdown.
The loss of food assistance will also impact veterans. A 2023 Rand Corporation study found that more than 1 million veterans are food insecure, although only two-thirds of that population were signed up for benefits like SNAP. Huck pointed out that many of those veterans are older, although SNAP also helps support new veterans while they are working to transition back into civilian life.
