Connecticut SNAP Benefits Won't Go Out In November, Officials Confirm

CONNECTICUT — Connecticut residents who receive federal food aid won’t get their November benefits as the ongoing federal shutdown continues, The Department of Agriculture has announced.

The Department of Agriculture posted a notice on its website after the Trump administration said it would not tap roughly $5 billion in contingency funds to keep benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly referred to as SNAP, flowing into November. That program helps about one in eight Americans buy groceries.

“Bottom line, the well has run dry,” the USDA notice says. “At this time, there will be no benefits issued on November 01. We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats.”

Nationally, more than 62 percent of nearly 41.7 million SNAP participants are in families with children; 37 percent are in families with members who are older adults or disabled; and more than 38 percent are in working families, according to an analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

The analysis of USDA Food and Nutrition Service data by the non-partisan research group that focuses on federal and state policies to reduce poverty and inequality also shows that 391,200 Connecticut residents receive SNAP benefits. That’s 11 percent of the state population (1 in 9) who depend on benefits to keep food on the table.

According to the data, most SNAP participants in Connecticut have incomes below the poverty line. The most recent Connecticut data from 2023 show:

• 10.4 percent of households were “food insecure,” meaning that their access to adequate food is limited by a lack of money and other resources.b
• 10.3 percent of the population lived below the poverty line.
• 13.3 percent of children lived in families below the poverty line.
• 9.4 percent of older adults lived below the poverty line.

The shutdown, which began Oct. 1, is now the second-longest on record. While the Republican administration took steps leading up to the shutdown to ensure SNAP benefits were paid this month, the cutoff would expand the impact of the impasse to a wider swath of Americans — and some of those most in need — unless a political resolution is found in just a few days.

The prospect of families not receiving food aid has deeply concerned states run by both parties.

Officials in Louisiana, Vermont and Virginia pledged to keep food aid flowing to recipients in their states, even if the federal program is stalled next month because of the government shutdown.

Gov. Ned Lamont today announced that his administration is providing $3 million in emergency state funding to the nonprofit organization Connecticut Foodshare to help Connecticut residents who are expected to lose access to food stamp benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) during the shutdown of the federal government.

According to the Connecticut Department of Social Services, posting on X, SNAP benefits issued before Oct. 31 can still be used in November. "Cash benefits like TFA and SAGA will still be issued normally," DSS officials said. Residents can check their balance by calling 1-888-328-2666 or using the MyDSS app.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.