The longest federal government shutdown in United States history is resulting in the suspension of Mississippi’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, posing a problem for Mississippi residents who rely on SNAP benefits to put food on the table. As benefits are being withheld, many Oxford organizations are working to fill that gap for people in need.
SNAP, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, provides monthly food assistance to low-income people, including those who are elderly or disabled. According to data from USAFacts, SNAP aided 384,800 Mississippi residents, or 13% of the state population, in the 2024 fiscal year.
Following rulings issued by two judges on Oct. 31, requiring the federal government to keep the program running, President Donald Trump’s administration has pledged to partially fund SNAP for November according to reporting from the Associated Press. The U.S. government says it will use an emergency fund of $4.65 billion, which is enough to cover about half of the normal benefits offered by the $8 billion monthly program.
It is unclear how quickly recipients will be able to access these benefits or how much they will receive.
“It feels like the whole system is paused while people’s real lives aren’t,” Milissa Wilson, an Oxford local originally from Etta, Miss., said. “The government shutdown has caused important time-sensitive documents to not get mailed out. Things like health care and housing support are slower or harder to reach right now. There is limited help when calling government agencies, furloughs. It’s just too much and I can only pray that this shall pass, too.”
The Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS) issued a press release on Oct. 24 detailing the shutdown but has not yet addressed the partial funding of SNAP.
“The United States Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has directed states not to transmit the EBT issuances files to EBT vendors until further notice,” the press release said. “As a result, no new SNAP benefits will be issued for November unless federal guidance changes.”
In a statement reported by WAPT, MDHS Chief Communications Officer Mark Jones said MDHS is awaiting direction to plan their next steps.
“Once a directive has been received and MDHS formulates a plan to distribute funds to clients, we will notify the public via our website and social media,” Jones said.
There have been no posts on MDHS social media regarding next steps for Mississippi SNAP recipients since the press release on Oct. 24.
The MDHS website lists resources and food banks in Mississippi and encourages those who need assistance to reach out to them.
Jones gave some advice for people who wish to help those struggling with the effects of the shutdown.
“If people want to help, we suggest making a financial donation to the food banks, as they can purchase items in bulk and maximize purchase power,” Jones said. “SNAP clients can contact the food bank websites for a pantry near them.”
For some Mississippi residents, such as Tupelo, Miss., native Finnegan Griffin, the situation has ushered in calls for community.
“SNAP benefits are what keep food in my house when everything else falls apart. They make the difference between eating something decent or skipping meals so my kids can eat,” Griffin said. “I’d love to see people share what they can, whether that’s food, rides, or even just checking in on each other. We can’t control what the government does, but we can make sure our neighbors don’t go hungry.”
Organizations in Lafayette County, such as the Oxford Community Market, are making efforts to aid those who usually rely on SNAP benefits.
“Our market is deeply committed to making sure that local food is abundant and accessible on every table in our community,” Oxford Community Market Director Betsy Chapman told The Daily Mississippian. “We want to do our part to help meet any extra food needs people might be facing this time of year.”
Chapman plans to continue her efforts with the market to help those in need.
“We had 20 bags (of food), and we have about eight left, so the demand is definitely there,” Chapman said. “The need is there, and we’re happy to just play a small role in helping make sure that people have healthy food. We plan to do this every week for the month of November, just to make sure that our friends and neighbors are in good shape with lots of fresh produce in their kitchens.”
Oxford Community Market collects donations for the Oxford Food Pantry every Tuesday.
“At the end of the farmers market, our farmers will often have some leftover tomatoes or squash, cucumbers or
whatever (else),” Chapman said. “So we go around and purchase it from them, and then we take it to the food pantry. It works out great because they do their distributions on Wednesday morning so everything is fresh and delicious, and people enjoy having some healthy vegetables to go with all the other food that the pantry provides.”
While the Oxford Food Pantry has not made any specific efforts in response to the shutdown, it also has been impacted by the reduction in federal funding for food banks and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs. As the pantry no longer has access to low- or no-cost meat, it is asking for monetary donations to offset the cost of serving around 650 families a month.
According to reporting from Mississippi Today, Gov. Tate Reeves has not indicated any effort from Mississippi to bridge the gap in the food assistance program until the federal shutdown ends, despite promises from Democratic and Republican governors in a few other states to utilize state funds in covering all or part of the program.
In the midst of the shutdown, Reeves is seeking a waiver to restrict the types of food that can be purchased using SNAP. According to a press release, the waiver Reeves has requested from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service moves to ban the purchasing of unhealthy food and beverages.
If approved, this waiver will prohibit the use of SNAP benefits to purchase processed foods that list sugar, cane sugar, corn syrup or high fructose syrup as the first ingredient excluding single-ingredient sugars used for cooking and baking. It will also ban beverages that list carbonated water and sugar, cane sugar, corn syrup or high fructose corn syrup as the first two ingredients. In addition, the waiver would make it possible for SNAP recipients to purchase hot prepared chicken such as rotisserie and non-fried, non-breaded chicken.
Stella Savell contributed reporting.
