SNAP

Around 42 million low-income Americans rely on the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, known as SNAP or food stamps, to buy groceries. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) oversees the program and says it is working on a major overhaul to root out waste, fraud, and abuse.

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 historic 43-day federal government shutdown dealt a major setback to Bay Area food banks, which were forced to ramp up resources as SNAP funding was delayed during a time they would normally be preparing for the holidays.

Amid the ongoing government shutdown, one Oakland bakery is stepping up to help families who are struggling financially, by giving away free cakes and cupcakes.

The order will expire just before midnight Thursday.

Contra Costa County residents receive November CalFresh benefits.

Swords to Plowshares, a nonprofit which serves veterans, held an early celebration in Oakland on Friday to honor those who've served this country.

Many Californians were waking up Friday to good news: Their EBT food assistance cards were full.

A federal appeals court had left an order in place that required the Trump administration to provide full SNAP benefits for November amid a U.S. government shutdown.

While food insecurity is often seen through the lens of families or homeless communities, another group faces the struggle at extremely high rates: college students.

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.