SNAP benefits: Milwaukee County proposes tapping contingency fund
Emergency food assistance proposal
The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday proposed using $150,000 from its contingency fund for emergency food assistance.
MILWAUKEE - The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday proposed using $150,000 from its contingency fund for emergency food assistance. That will be debated at a special finance meeting later this week.
Food donations
Local perspective:
In the meantime, the community is pitching in. Milwaukee launched a citywide food drive, collecting donations at Milwaukee Police Department district stations and a number of other locations across the city.
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The Milwaukee Police Department had so much to pick up, it called in the wagon to District 4 on the city's northwest side. The Milwaukee Health Department reports the county-city nonprofit drive raised $77,000 – equivalent to 235,000 meals.
SNAP benefits: Milwaukee food donation boxes part of citywide drive
With federal food assistance programs stopped Saturday, a citywide food drive is underway in Milwaukee.
Government shutdown
Big picture view:
The government shutdown has reached a historic 35th day. It has resulted in delays and uncertainty surrounding federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits.
"The Trump administration needs to stop playing games with our most vulnerable population and really focus on ending this shutdown for all citizens of this country," said Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley.
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"Democrats need to reopen the government so we can get these benefits out the door for people who truly need them," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Dig deeper:
The Trump administration on Monday said it would send SNAP recipients 50% of their monthly allotment, saying the contingency fund only has about $5 billion and the cost of funding the food stamps program for the month is closer to $9 billion.
"I think it’s asinine, right, that we are literally utilizing the most vulnerable population as a political pawn in this game of chess of politics," Crowley said.
Food donation box, part of citywide effort, outside Fiserv Forum before Bucks game on Nov. 1
On Tuesday, questions started again when President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that SNAP benefits:
"SNAP BENEFITS, which increased by Billions and Billions of Dollars (MANY FOLD!) during Crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous term in office (Due to the fact that they were haphazardly "handed" to anyone for the asking, as opposed to just those in need, which is the purpose of SNAP!), will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT"
But soon after that, Leavitt backtracked and said the money would still go out the door this month.
"The administration is fully complying with the court order. I just spoke to the president about it," she said. "The recipients of these SNAP benefits need to understand it is going to take some time to receive this money, because the Democrats have forced the administration into a very untenable position.
"We are digging into a contingency fund that is supposed to be for emergencies, catastrophes, for war. And the president does not want to have to tap into this fund in the future. And that’s what he was referring to in his Truth Social post.
Wisconsin FoodShare
By the numbers:
Right now, some 700,000 Wisconsin residents are waiting for November's FoodShare benefits. Federal judges ordered the Trump administration to send out SNAP money despite the shutdown.
According to USA Facts, 21% of households in Wisconsin's 4th District, which is centered on Milwaukee, get SNAP benefits. Statewide, about 18% of households with children receive benefits.
USA Facts also found Wisconsin is 23rd of 51 states (plus the District of Columbia) in terms of share of the population who receive SNAP benefits.
The Source: FOX6 News referenced information from Milwaukee County, as well as the Milwaukee Health Department, USA Facts and prior coverage of the food drive.