In May 2025, 1.45 million Ohioans received monthly Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program food benefits. The SNAP program is how the federal government distributes money to citizens who can’t afford to buy food. We’ve entered the first week of November, and SNAP has halted its electronic food benefit program that provides low-income households with food. Amid this crisis, Ohio has stepped up to bridge the gap between the loss of benefits and the demand for aid from food banks.
On Thursday, Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order to spend $25 million providing immediate food assistance, including $7 million to various state food banks and up to $18 million in emergency relief benefits to more than 63,000 Ohioans. The loss of SNAP benefits comes as a result of the ongoing government shutdown that has affected Americans who have lost jobs or are furloughed, losing their income.
Ohio released a notice saying it's been informed by its SNAP benefits vendor that the United States Department of Agriculture has confirmed SNAP recipients will be able to access their existing benefits after Oct. 31. However, benefits for November are still largely affected.
This anti-hunger federal program dates back to the Great Depression. NPR said SNAP has “never been disrupted this way,” speaking to the strength and effectiveness the program has had in assisting those with food insecurity and reducing poverty.
The Ohio Senate was forced to protect the Budget Stabilization Fund, also known as the “rainy day” fund, from its potential use of being used to cover hundreds of millions of dollars worth of SNAP benefits during the federal government shutdown. Senate President Rob McColley said, “The BSF is there to protect Ohio’s balanced budget from any unexpected shortfalls.”
He also said this plan redirects resources to neighborhood food banks that work on the front lines with families who will be most impacted by the loss of SNAP benefits.
In Athens County, 14% of households rely on SNAP benefits. In surrounding counties such as Vinton County, 20.5% receive benefits and in Meigs County, 24.8% of households do. Households that receive SNAP benefits are also automatically eligible for free and reduced lunches. Within the Athens County Public School District, 45% of children qualify for free and reduced lunch.
Free and reduced lunch is funded through a variety of federal programs, such as the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program, as well as the Child and Adult Care Food Program. Luckily, school breakfasts and lunches provided to students are expected to be unaffected throughout November. However, while students will still receive meals at school this month, a continued shutdown could largely impact program availability, and many students will go hungry before or after school due to the lack of SNAP benefits.
The state of Ohio showed up for its residents by providing fiscal assistance to combat food insecurity and hunger that would be onset by the loss of SNAP benefits. However, the action from Ohio lawmakers is only a temporary fix to a much larger problem. As Democrats and Republicans in Washington, D.C. refuse to reach a funding agreement, millions of Americans are feeling the effects of the shutdown.
As the shutdown looms on, it will be up to states to aid esidents in combating hunger, much like what Ohio has done. Ultimately, there should be no reason why Americans should go hungry or have their food assistance stripped away. Lawmakers must end the shutdown before states no longer have funding to support their citizens, and certainly before the hunger crisis deepens into the winter.
The Post editorials are independent of the publication's news coverage. The Post can be reached via editor@thepostathens.com.
