SNAP Shutdown

CalFresh recipients in Contra Costa County will, starting Monday, be able to get debit cards to cover the cost of groceries while their benefits are on hold. 

SNAP allotments for November have been revealed and here is the highest amount of monthly food assistance recipients can receive.

As the government shutdown reached a record 35th day, the burden on people without SNAP food aid — or struggling to live without paychecks from federal jobs — became painfully clear in the long lines outside Bay Area food pantries.

As CalFresh recipients remain in limbo with payments still on hold, a Novato woman turned her little free libraries into miniature food pantries to support the community during the government shutdown.

President Trump said in a Truth Social post Tuesday that SNAP benefits won’t be paid until the government reopen.

Kelly Gonzalez and her father, Javier, were among the many shoppers at the Alameda Food Bank on Monday, worried about how they will put food on the table, since the Trump administration's announcement that it will partially fund federal food supplements, and then another bombshell that it wouldn't pay for SNAP until the federal shutdown ends, has left more questions than answers. 

Amid growing concern about food insecurity in the Bay Area, Lieutenant Governor Elena Kounalakis met Monday with several nonprofit leaders working on the front lines of hunger relief. Kounalakis toured White Pony Express, a Concord–based food recovery organization that distributes millions of pounds of surplus food each year to partner agencies serving those in need.

With SNAP benefits expiring on Saturday, local food banks, restaurants, and community members have been stepping up, in an effort to support their neighbors who will be affected.

The Trump administration faces deadlines on Monday to tell two federal judges whether it will comply with court orders that it continue to fund the SNAP using contingency funds during the government shutdown.

Mike Tyson said his new business venture could support the 42 million Americans whose SNAP benefits will be reduced on Nov. 1.

A Pacifica teenager is stepping up to help neighbors struggling with cuts to federal food assistance programs.

Contra Costa County plans to distribute grocery debit cards to the county's 107,000 CalFresh enrollees.

Two federal judges ordered the Trump administration to fund SNAP, ensuring CalFresh benefits continue amid a looming shortfall in California.

Ahead of a possible pause in food assistance payments to low-income families, Bay Area elected officials and nonprofit leaders have announced contingency plans in case the shutdown continues.

The government shutdown that started Oct. 1 shows no signs of being resolved, and the people who rely on federally-funded programs are starting to feel the pain.

CalFresh es el programa de ayuda alimentaria más grande de California y es el equivalente a SNAP.

Here's a look at the SNAP shutdown by the numbers:

At food banks in the South Bay and beyond, the rush was on Thursday to be ready for an unwanted deadline.

The federal government shutdown is threatening to suspend these SNAP benefits, after the US Department of Agriculture last week, in a message on its website, that payments would not be issued on Nov. 1. Here are some frequently asked questions about SNAP:

CalFresh is the largest food program in California, and is the equivalent of SNAP.

Some states are taking action to protect food assistance as the federal government plans to suspend SNAP payments starting Saturday.

Some of the nation’s most vulnerable people depend on SNAP, including more than half a million residents in the San Francisco Bay Area. Nearly 40% of recipients are children, 20% are seniors, and about 10% are people with disabilities.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta announced on Tuesday that they, along with over 20 other states, are suing the Trump administration over what they say is the federal government's "unlawful refusal" to fund SNAP benefits due to the nearly month-long federal government shutdown. 

DoorDash is offering SNAP recipients free delivery and waived service fees just as federal assistance is scheduled to run dry.

Roughly 1 million state residents will have access to emergency food benefits following a settlement reached this week in a lawsuit filed last year against the U.S. Department of Agriculture.