Gov. Healey Vows No SNAP-Benefit 'Claw Back' Despite President Trump's Demands

BOSTON — Gov. Maura Healey urged residents who had their SNAP benefit cards fully funded this weekend to use that money to buy needed groceries as she resisted demands from the Trump Administration to "claw back" a portion of that funding or face penalties from the federal government.

Healey also said that, while she is pleased there is a pending agreement to reopen the federal government after six weeks, Congress needs to act to extend Obamacare health care subsidies as residents face "skyrocketing" premium costs should they be allowed to expire. Democrats had hoped to have those benefits extended as part of the government funding bill, yet the compromise that passed a key U.S. Senate procedural vote on Sunday does not guarantee that will be the case.

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"The law is really clear," she said of the SNAP payouts during a Monday news conference. "Multiple courts have already ruled on this issue. President Trump needs to do his job and fully fund SNAP benefits. My job is to protect the people of Massachusetts. My job is to work with my team, as we did, to go to court, to fight for them, and to make sure that we were ready to go and that cards were loaded over the weekend so that as soon as this funding became available, we were able to get that funding out the door."

She said she is confident that any attempts the President Trump administration makes to appeal the court ruling and force states to pull back the funds will be unsuccessful.

"I don't know what they're planning to do," she said. "But we know the law is clear on this. We are going to make sure that people continue to get their SNAP benefits.

"He may threaten to punish states. I am not going to punish residents. I am not going to punish Americans."

The Trump Administration ordered a freeze in SNAP funding as of Nov. 1 amid the ongoing federal government shutdown. State Attorney General Andrea Campbell was one of 21 AGs nationwide to join a suit against the administration demanding that contingency funding be used to pay out those benefits during the shutdown.

"If President Trump is going to be cruel enough to take back funds from Americans — all of whom were poor enough to qualify for SNAP — I find that unimaginable," Healey said.

She said those who had their cards loaded over the weekend should use the funds without fear of needing to later repay the money.

"SNAP is fully funded," she said. "SNAP beneficiaries, make sure you go out and get what you need to feed your families."

Healey added that a United Way donation drive launched in collaboration with the state, as the SNAP benefit freeze loomed, raised more than $5 million, which will be funneled to food pantries and other food-assistance programs across the state.

She called the dysfunction in Washington "chaos" and urged action on the health care credits as soon as Congress returns to session to vote on the federal government funding.

"They've got to act now," she said. "The rest of us, Americans, we live in the present. Now people are trying to figure out their budgets and plan for next year. They are trying to figure out: 'Oh my god, my health care costs are going to go up 10, 15, 20 thousand (dollars) next year. How am I going to figure that out? How am I going to make that work?'"

She said that without action, health care benefits will expire for 337,000 state residents as of Jan. 1.

"Just extend these tax credits and sort out the other things over time," she said. "Don't double down on people's pain in Massachusetts or around this country."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)