New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Monday that she’s exploring whether the state can send schoolchildren home with meals as the ongoing federal shutdown threatens next month’s food assistance benefits.
Hochul, a Democrat, is pushing for President Donald Trump’s administration to tap into emergency funding to ensure Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for low-income families — commonly known as SNAP, or food stamps — go out as scheduled Nov. 1.
But Hochul also said she’s exploring a potential backup plan if the feds don’t come through: allocating additional state money to schools so they can send kids home with extra food at the end of the day.
New York state is home to about 3 million people who rely on SNAP benefits each month, of which 1.8 million are in New York City, according to state and city data. That count includes roughly 500,000 children in the city.
“I'm trying to find a real direct pipeline to the kitchen tables across this state,” Hochul said at a news conference at the Casabe Senior Houses in East Harlem. “So I’ve got to work out some details.”
The Trump administration’s Department of Agriculture, which oversees the SNAP program, has warned the benefits won’t go out on Nov. 1 because of the federal government shutdown, which began Oct. 1.
"Bottom line, the well has run dry,” according to a note on the department’s website.
Hochul also said she has fast-tracked about $40 million, including $30 million announced Monday, in state funding for food pantries across the state to meet an expected increase in demand if the benefits don’t come through.
Earlier this year, Hochul and lawmakers approved a law as part of the state budget to provide free breakfast and lunch to school students throughout the state, building on a program that was previously in place in New York City. Hochul is now floating a plan that would run through that program to provide additional food for kids whose families rely on SNAP benefits.
She acknowledged her latest idea comes with potential legal hurdles, since she said the program requires that the funding is spent on meals served in the schools themselves.
“What if, hypothetically, there's leftovers every day?” Hochul said. “Can you take the leftovers home? Maybe it's a few extra sandwiches to feed the kids who are not school age or to help out at the dinner table. So I'm trying to get real creative here.”
Food pantries in some parts of the state offer similar benefits, known as “backpack programs,” where kids are sent home with bags filled with groceries on a regular basis.
Adriene Holder, chief attorney of The Legal Aid Society’s civil practice, said Hochul’s move to free up $40 million in food pantry assistance is a good first step. But she said the state has to be prepared to sustain that funding and do more if the federal government doesn’t act.
“This moment demands leadership, and no family should go hungry, especially with the holiday season approaching, because of political gridlock in Washington,” Holder said in a statement.
On Monday, Hochul said she’ll be announcing her broader strategy on food assistance “very shortly.”
“This is not talking about something down the road,” she said of the looming SNAP disruption. “That is literally the month of November.”
