As the federal government shut down drags on, more and more people are turning to food shelves for help.
John Wilgers is President and CEO of the Greater Twin Cities United Way. He says they have launched an emergency food relief campaign, warning that demand for help is spiking as the availability of federal food assistance remains in question.
"We operate a call service called 211 where people can call in and get referrals to for any number of issues, but our calls related to food security have gone up 150% since a month ago," says Wilgers.
On Friday, President Donald Trump’s administration asked a federal appeals court to block a judge’s order that it distribute November’s full monthly SNAP food benefits amid a U.S. government shutdown, even as at least some states like Minnesota were trying to move quickly to get the money to people.
"We made a round of over $100,000 in emergency grants to different food, organizations in the Twin Cities," Wilgers explains.
He adds that several corporations are helping, and people can also donate or volunteer by going online to GTCUW.org.
The court wrangling prolonged weeks of uncertainty for the food program that serves about 1 in 8 Americans, mostly with lower incomes.
An individual can receive a monthly maximum food benefit of nearly $300 and a family of four up to nearly $1,000, although many receive less than that under a formula that takes into consideration their income. For many SNAP participants, it remains unclear exactly how much they will receive this month, and when they will receive it.
Because of the federal government shutdown, the Trump administration originally had said that SNAP benefits would not be available in November. However, two judges ruled last week that the administration could not skip November’s benefits entirely because of the shutdown. One of those judges was U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr., who ordered the full payments Thursday.