U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, is urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture to take all possible steps to protect food assistance for low-income families during the ongoing government shutdown.
In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Collins called on the agency to ensure that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments continue without interruption. SNAP provides critical support to low-income households to help them afford nutritious food. In Maine, more than 170,000 residents — including 50,000 children and 73,000 older adults — rely on the program.
“The needless and reckless government shutdown directed by Senator Schumer is putting federal nutrition assistance for these individuals at risk,” Collins wrote.
“The SNAP program is incredibly important to low-income families in Maine. I urge you to consider all available options in accordance with federal law to ensure that this vital nutrition assistance continues, including the use of contingency funds and evaluating the viability of partial payments or any transfer authority you may have,” she stressed.
Collins said she will continue working with colleagues to end the shutdown but in the interim pressed USDA to use every available tool to maintain benefits in the meantime.
