The nation’s capital is bracing for an unprecedented humanitarian crisis as the Trump administration refuses to release federal contingency funds to maintain food assistance programs during the ongoing government shutdown.
Beginning Nov. 1, millions of Americans who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, are expected to stop receiving benefits for the first time in U.S. history.
The District and surrounding states are already preparing for the fallout. According to federal data, more than 1.6 million residents across D.C., Maryland, and Virginia depend on SNAP benefits. Local officials warn that the cutoff could push thousands of families into food insecurity.
D.C. Council member Christina Henderson said the city is facing “death by a thousand cuts” as the national government eliminates jobs and dismantles key social programs.
She said the District does not have the $30 million needed to replace lost federal funding.
“There also seems to be no meaningful conversations happening on the federal level about how to get these programs back,” Henderson stated.
Mayor Muriel Bowser said she remains hopeful that Congress will reach a compromise before November.
The District plans to divert $125,000 in emergency funds to sustain its Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program for about 500 families through early November.
“We have a very small part of it that is a local responsibility, and we need the federal government to do its part,” Bowser said.
The crisis comes as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed that it will not use $6 billion in federal contingency funds to extend SNAP through the shutdown. The department has also warned states that it will not reimburse any that use their own funds to continue the program.
District Attorney General Brian Schwalb and more than 20 Democratic attorneys general and governors are suing the USDA for suspending SNAP benefits.
“We just filed a lawsuit alongside 25 states to restore SNAP food assistance during the federal shutdown. 141,000 D.C. residents rely on SNAP to afford meals — including 47,000 children and 24,000 seniors,” Schwalb wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “We will do everything we can to prevent D.C. families from going hungry.”
He also noted the challenges the USDA cuts present for local programming that supports many Washingtonians.
“Halting SNAP benefits will also hurt more than 400 local businesses in D.C. that provide food to our communities — often in food deserts,” Schwalb continued. “Many of these stores are small businesses already operating on thin margins. If SNAP revenue is eliminated, they risk going out of business.”
Maryland officials said they have the cash reserves to continue SNAP for a short period but will not take the risk without a guarantee of reimbursement.
“We are not going to gamble billions of taxpayer dollars while this administration turns its back on working families,” one official said.
In Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency, pledging to use state resources to continue food aid while blaming Democrats for what he called a “Democrat Shutdown.” His order allows the state to direct emergency funds to maintain benefits for more than 850,000 Virginians.
“I refuse to let hungry Virginians be used as leverage by Congressional Democrats,” Youngkin said.