Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has declared a state of emergency to help maintain food aid for state residents as a three-week-long United States government shutdown threatens to halt federal benefits.
Youngkin said on Thursday that the move would allow him to use emergency funds to assist Virginians in the absence of federal appropriations to fund the food benefits administered by states.
More than 850,000 Virginia residents would feel the impact if Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food benefits run out on November 1, he said.
The emergency declaration by Virginia, the first state to issue one, comes after other states warned food aid recipients this week that their benefits may not be distributed next month if the shutdown continues.
More than 41 million Americans receive monthly SNAP benefits, also known as food stamps, and nearly 7 million more people get aid from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, known as WIC.
California Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday said he would deploy the state’s National Guard and fast-track $80m to support food banks while the federal shutdown drags on.
The government shutdown is now in its 23rd day – the second-longest in history – with no end in sight. Both Republicans and Democrats blame the other side for the shutdown. A key sticking point is policy demands related to healthcare.
Democrats have refused to consider any budget legislation that does not include extending COVID-era health insurance subsidies under the Affordable Care Act, warning of a spike in prices for consumers should they expire, as planned, by the end of the year.
They have also called to reverse Republican-led cuts to Medicaid, a government health insurance programme for low-income people, that were put into place when US President Donald Trump signed into law a vast tax cuts and spending bill in July.
Democrats want an extension of those subsidies before they agree to vote to end the shutdown, while Republicans have said that issues can be dealt with once the government reopens.
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