Wisconsin’s FoodShare program, which feeds 700,000 residents, will be out of money November 1 due to federal shutdown

MADISON, Wis. (CIVIC MEDIA) – As the government shutdown continues, hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites could be at risk of going hungry. 

About 700,000 people across the state rely on FoodShare, the state program of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. That includes young families taking in low wages, people with disabilities, and seniors on fixed incomes. A total 12 percent of the state’s population uses food benefits. 

Gov. Tony Evers said the state’s FoodShare program will run out of money at the end of October due to the federal government shutdown. All of the program’s funding comes from the federal government. His office said the Trump administration told Wisconsin officials that food benefits will only continue through the end of the month. 

Evers wrote a letter to United States Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, urging the Trump Administration to transfer money to the SNAP program, which is allowed under federal law during a shutdown. 

“Empty cupboards and stomachs are not abstract outcomes. They are the very real and near consequences of the dysfunction in Washington. These are also consequences you can prevent today,” Evers wrote in the letter. 

Department of Health Services Secretary Kirsten Johnson even said people who use QUEST cards for their FoodShare benefits should know that money may not be available once we hit Saturday, Nov. 1. Even if they had money left at the end of October, they may not be able to access it. 

“Members who have benefits on their cards may want to stock up on food items that don’t go bad—canned goods, boxed items, with their benefits before the end of October,” Johnson said in a statement from the governor’s office. 

In Dane County, more people are experiencing hunger. Staff from The River Food Pantry said they’ve already seen a 14 percent rise in demand so far this year. 

Anyone who needs help feeding their family can call 211 to be connected to resources.