Even as SNAP is partially restored, Clark County Food Bank responds to increased demand

On Monday, the Trump administration announced that it will partially restore funding for the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program, but only at half the amount recipients of the food aid program would normally get this month. In separate rulings on Friday, two federal judges had ordered the Trump administration to tap billions of dollars in emergency reserves to continue to fund the program which 42 million Americans rely on, including 1 in 6 households in Oregon. .

SNAP recipients will likely still face delays, which could last weeks, as state agencies scramble to account for the reduced November benefits. Oregon and Washington were part of a coalition of 25 states and the District of Columbia that had sued to prevent the loss of monthly SNAP benefits beginning Nov. 1 after the Trump administration said it would halt funding for the program during the federal government shutdown. Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson and Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek last week authorized millions of dollars in state funds to support food banks in their respective states.

Roughly 930,000 people are enrolled in SNAP in Washington state. Sixty thousand of them reside in Clark County, according to Emily Straw, president of the Clark County Food Bank. She says there has been increased demand from clients in the past week or so at the two pantries the food bank operates in Vancouver.  

Straw joins us to share how her organization has mobilized to help vulnerable Clark County residents facing hunger.