Montco's $500K Emergency SNAP Grant Helping Local Food Banks

LANSDALE, PA — Montgomery County has disbursed $500,000 in emergency funding to food banks around the area to help tide them over during the ongoing federal government shutdown.

The shutdown has led to the disruption of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Some 63,000 Montgomery County residents lost access last week, positioning food banks as a critical lifeline.

The U.S. Senate has voted to end the shutdown, and the vote is headed to the U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday. It's expected to pass in the Republican-controlled body. But in the meantime, with the shutdown still ongoing, the county funding is proving crucial.

“We’re here today because of inaction, ineptitude, callousness, and cruelty," Montgomery County Commissioner Neil Makhija said when the emergency funding was announced on Oct. 31. "What is happening is a manufactured crisis. It’s happening because there are people in the federal government who simply do not care that SNAP benefits will expire."

The decision to fund the county's food banks was announced at at Manna on Main Street in Lansdale. Makhija was joined by both other commissioners, Tom DiBello and Jamila Winder. HealthSpark CEO Emma Hartz also announced a concurrent $200,000 grant to support the effort.

The county is also organizing an ongoing food drive. To donate and to learn more about how to help, see here.

If you need food, see the MontCo Anti-Hunger Network for a full list of resources.