SNAP payments are in limbo
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Arkansans who normally receive federal food assistance on the 4th of the month had not received their benefits as of around noon Tuesday, state Department of Human Services spokesperson Gavin Lesnick confirmed to Axios.
How it works: About 244,000 Arkansans, including nearly 100,000 children and teens, rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), receiving a total of about $41 million a month.
- Recipients receive benefits monthly on various dates, but benefits generally start going out on the 4th of each month.
The latest: President Trump said Tuesday that SNAP benefits would only be paid after the government shutdown ends, appearing to defy two federal court orders ruling the federal government must pay out at least partial benefits during the government shutdown.
- The Trump administration had announced Monday that it planned to partially fund SNAP benefits after the rulings issued Friday. A supplementary declaration noted that the changes states have to implement to roll out reduced benefits could "take anywhere from a few weeks to up to several months."
State of play: Guidance Arkansas received from the United States Department of Agriculture, issued Tuesday, states that the Food and Nutrition Service is reducing SNAP maximum allotments to half of eligible households' current November allotment and that "state agencies must take immediate action to implement this reduction."
What's next: "We are reviewing this information and developing plans to provide these benefits as soon as possible," according to DHS. "We will need to recalculate benefit amounts for all recipients, and cannot yet advise a date when benefits will be issued. We will provide additional details as they are available."
Find food through the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank or donate.