Tri-town braces for impact of SNAP benefit freeze

Amid a federal government shutdown, over a thousand SNAP recipients in the Tri-town are now being impacted by the freezing of the food assistance program.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP, provides assistance to low-income families and individuals to combat food insecurity across the country.

With the federal government shutdown in place, Tri-town residents who receive SNAP benefits are unable to access their monthly allotted funds for food in November due to Congress failing to pass legislation to fund national programs like SNAP.

On Tuesday, Nov. 4, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the Trump Administration was "fully complying" with a federal court order to use an approximately $4.6 billion contingency fund to help fund SNAP this month. However, the contingency fund would only make up for half the regular SNAP funding, which is normally about $8 billion a month.

According to the Massachusetts Bureau of Geographic Information, 415 Marion recipients, 336 Mattapoisett recipients and 278 Rochester recipients are enrolled in SNAP.

Tri-town organizations, such as the Marion Council on Aging and Rochester Council on Aging, are preparing to assist residents who may be impacted by the SNAP suspension which started on Saturday, Nov. 1.

Marion Council on Aging Director Karen Gregory said that the center is prepared to help residents by providing resources and referring them to the food pantries and food banks in the area.

“We’re trying to assemble as many resources as we can,” said Gregory.

Assistance will be individualized on a case-by-case basis and Gregory encourages residents to reach out to the council on aging if they are seeking help with food insecurity.

Marion Council on Aging Outreach Coordinator Paula Caron-Lecuyer said that help should be individualized because “everybody’s needs are different.”

Some may rely heavily on SNAP for support while “it may not be a huge impact” for others.

Caron-Lecuyer said that the center is ready to provide resources to residents of all ages.

“Seniors or not … I’ve gotten a list of referrals to give anybody in need of anything,” she said.

Caron-Lecuyer said that the center can help residents with paperwork to receive assistance from local food banks, in addition to helping with transportation to said food banks if needed.

While preparing for the impact of the freeze, she has compiled a list of organizations in the South Coast that could help residents, including the PACE Food Bank in New Bedford, Salvation Army in Plymouth, The Shepherd’s Food Pantry in Acushnet and Damien’s Pantry in Wareham.

“If anybody’s in need of anything like that, we’ll have the list available,” said Caron-Lecuyer.

Marion residents can reach out to the council on aging by calling 508-748-3570.

Rochester Council on Aging Director Eric Poulin encourages senior residents to contact their outreach coordinator Theresa Eckstrom for assistance if they are experiencing food insecurity or issues related to the freeze of SNAP.

The Rochester Council on Aging assists senior residents ages 60 and older with various needs, including finding stable sources of food.

“If we know of someone that’s on SNAP that is a senior that may be impacted, we’ll do what we can to try to get them extra food or resources for as long as this shutdown lasts,” said Poulin.

The center identifies seniors in the community who need assistance and helps them receive food from organizations like the Greater Boston Food Bank and United Way of Greater New Bedford. These residents have the option of either getting the food delivered to their homes or picking it up from the council on aging.

“We’ll do our best if there’s people that don’t currently get services if they want to reach out to Teresa if they’re food insecure, and we can see what we can do to help,” said Poulin.

He also suggested that residents reach out to Damien’s Food Pantry or United Way of Greater New Bedford directly if they are struggling amid the SNAP shutdown.

“The local communities will continue to do the best that we can, but the impact could be significant,” said Poulin of the shutdown.

Rochester senior residents can reach out to the council on aging for assistance by calling 508-763-8723.