A crowd gathered on the State House steps Tuesday as Attorney General Andrea Campbell announced a lawsuit filed by her and 22 other attorneys general over SNAP funding.
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Massachusetts, 21 other states, the District of Columbia and three governors have sued the U.S. Department of Agriculture over the imminent lapse in funding for federal food assistance.
According to the USDA, funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is set to run out on November 1 because of the government shutdown, which stretched into its 28th day Tuesday.
More than 40 million Americans, including 1.1 million Massachusetts residents, are SNAP beneficiaries.
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"Bottom line, the well has run dry," a message on the USDA website reads. "At this time, there will be no benefits issued November 01. We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats. They can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance."
In a press release announcing the lawsuit Tuesday, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell accused the Trump Administration of refusing to use billions of dollars in contingency funds appropriated by Congress to keep SNAP afloat during the shutdown.
"Furthermore, USDA has funded other programs with emergency funds during this shutdown, but has refused to fund SNAP, leaving millions of Americans without the assistance they need to buy food," the press release read. "It is clear the federal government is making a deliberate, illegal and inhumane choice not to fund the crucial SNAP program."
When asked for comment about the lawsuit, a USDA spokesperson again referred to the situation as an "inflection point for Senate Democrats" who the spokesperson said face an ultimatum: "Continue to hold out for the Far-Left wing of the party or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive timely WIC and SNAP allotments.”
There is still little sign of headway on Capitol Hill. For the 13th time Tuesday, Democrats in the Senate rejected a funding measure passed by the House. Democrats still want negotiations on expiring health care tax credits, but Republicans have said they will only negotiate once the government reopens.
WBZ NewsRadio's Mike Macklin reports.