UPDATED: Wednesday, Jan. 3, 11:49 a.m. EST
The battle between the D.C. Council and Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) over Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits reached new heights on Tuesday when Council Chairman Phil Mendelson filed a resolution allowing the council to initiate or participate in a lawsuit for the disbursement of excess funds initially intended for the program.
The council will deliberate on the legislation, titled SNAP Litigation Authorization Act, on Jan. 9. If it passes, this will mark the first time in a decade that the council has sued the executive. Council members took a similar course of action against then-Mayor Vincent C. Gray (D) in 2014 for budget autonomy.
The D.C. Department of Human Services currently processes $27 million in SNAP benefits to 83,000 households and 138,000 D C. residents. The average benefit is $324 per household and $194 per person.
During the latter part of last year, the Bowser administration officials told the D.C. Council Committee on Health that, due to competing budget priorities, it wouldn’t direct $39.6 million in excess revenue toward SNAP benefits. They reached this conclusion even though the fiscal year 2024 Local Budget Act mandates the disbursement of excess funds if September’s quarterly local revenue estimates exceed the D.C. Office of the Chief Financial Officer’s (OCFO) February estimates.
In October, the OCFO confirmed that September’s revenue estimates exceeded February’s by nearly two percentage points, or $185.8 million. On Dec. 29, after the Office of the Chief Financial Officer reported no change in the fiscal plan forecast, Bowser released a statement touting what she called the responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars and strategic investment in programs that make D.C. an attractive place to live and conduct business.
On Monday, New Year’s Day, protesters interrupted Bowser’s annual New Year 5K event, belting chants of “Don’t steal SNAP.” In response to an Informer inquiry about the possibility of litigation, Bowser’s office reiterated previous talking points about budgetary constraints.
However, they said Bowser is open to continuing discussion about various avenues of meeting residents’ housing, cash and housing needs.
“With significant fiscal and human resources pressures in our human services cluster, it’s not prudent to increase spending on one program, especially when demand for other programs that support the same people is increasing beyond our current budget,” a Bowser representative told The Informer.
“Mayor Bowser’s recent conversation with Council member Henderson regarding Give SNAP a Raise was around these pressures and alternative and permanent ways to provide food support to residents in need,” the representative said. “We hope to continue these conversations, and our goal is for the council and the executive to work together on more sustainable food investments.”
On Dec. 19, the entire council, with Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large), health committee chairwoman, at the forefront, signed a letter asking Bowser to reconsider her decision to not disperse the funds. A week prior, the D.C. Office of the Attorney General, responding to Ward 4 Council member Janeese Lewis George’s request for input on the matter, said that Bowser couldn’t unilaterally reallocate funds that had already been allocated to the D.C. Department of Human Services to be spent between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, 2024.
During budget season last year, Lewis George successfully shepherded an amendment ensuring that SNAP increases would be temporarily funded with excess local revenue. The measure stood to benefit more than 145,000 District-based SNAP recipients, all of whom would’ve seen a 10% increase in their monthly SNAP allotment.
Council member Anita Bonds (D-At Large) and Matt Frumin’s (D-Ward 3) office declined to comment on the SNAP Litigation Authorization Act.
Staffers for Council members Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) and Vincent C. Gray (D-Ward 7) didn’t respond to The Informer’s inquiry.
Meanwhile, staffers from Henderson’s, Lewis George’s and Council members Zachary Parker’s and Charles Allen’s offices confirmed their council member’s support of Mendelson’s resolution.
Council member Robert White (D-At Large), who engaged in a similar battle with Bowser about $20 million in emergency rental assistance funds last year, similarly affirmed his support.
“The council is deeply concerned about the mayor’s pattern of taking from safety net programs to pay for her pet priorities. I will continue to push back on the administration’s strategy to eviscerate social safety nets by working with residents and council in a unified way,” White said. “I will not stop fighting and will continue to sound the alarm when the mayor sets up false choices to intentionally pit human services programs funding against one another.”
Council member Kenyan McDuffie (I-At Large) also said he would support the bill, calling it a matter of the mayor’s respect, or lack thereof, for the legislative process.
“The executive should have followed the clear language and intent of the law and implemented the increase. However, they did not,” McDuffie said. “The council should not have to sue the mayor to get her to do what’s right. But, if it comes down to a vote, I will support the resolution authorizing the council to sue on behalf of our residents in need.”
Council member Brianne Nadeau released a statement in support of Mendelson’s resolution, calling Bowser’s decision not to allocate the excess funds toward SNAP a “slap in the face” to low-income residents who were expecting the benefits increase.
“The budget is a law. It is introduced by the mayor, amended and passed by the council, and signed by the mayor — like any other law,” Nadeau said. “Last month, I and many of my colleagues called on the mayor to reverse her decision. She didn’t. We must ensure that residents who were promised the funds receive them and secure the integrity of our system of government.”
In expressing his support for the SNAP Litigation Authorization Act, Council member Trayon White (D-Ward 8) reflected on what conversations with constituents revealed to him about the quality of safety net programs.
“It’s our duty to create resources for those who need it,” White said. “I got a few calls today saying that the system was down yet again. I am also concerned about two seniors who are saying they are only getting $34 and $32 of SNAP benefits to last a whole month. That’s not going to sustain anyone.”
Thank you for keeping me up-to-date on what is happening in my hometown. There must be a nuance involved in this struggle that is missing. It defies political common sense to deny food benefit increases to
low-income people when food costs have been hit hard by inflation.