Advocates rally for SNAP funding in Utah following federal judges’ orders

SALT LAKE CITY – About two dozen people rallied Friday afternoon to urge continued funding for food assistance as SNAP benefits for thousands of Utah families are about to be suspended.

The rally on Halloween outside the Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building in Salt Lake City was dubbed “Hunger is Scary.” It came just hours after two federal judges ordered the Trump administration to keep paying funding the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, or SNAP, commonly known as food stamps.

Last week, the state announced those benefits would be suspended as the month-old federal government shutdown continues. But with the federal judges’ rulings, advocates called on Utah leaders to make sure families in the state still receive their benefits.

“We want the governor and our congressional delegation to hold the Trump administration accountable to get those funds released quickly and without delay,” said Gina Cornia, executive director of Utahns Against Hunger.

President Trump suggested he will comply with the rulings if he receives “appropriate legal direction,” according to the Associated Press. Both federal judges asked for status updates on Monday.

Around 86,000 Utah families receive food stamps. A Utah Department of Workforce Services spokesperson told KSL on Friday the state had not received any updated guidance since the judges’ rulings, and benefits were still set to be suspended on Saturday.

Amid the uncertainty, Utah Republican leaders this week committed up to $4 million to food banks in the state, while also blaming congressional Democrats for the shutdown. House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper, specifically referred to Democratic senators who voted against a Republican proposal to keep the government running through Nov. 21.

“I’m frustrated,” Schultz said on Thursday. “As a state leader, we are frustrated that Washington, D.C. can’t get its act together and that you have 45 people — think about that, 45 people — hurting hundreds of millions of people across the country.”

But Rep. Sandra Hollins, D-Salt Lake City, who attended Friday’s rally, said the issue of food assistance funding should not be political.

“We have people in our community that’s going without food – something basic, a human right,” Hollins said, “and now we want to sit here and talk about if this is a Republican problem or a Democratic problem. This is a human problem.”

While SNAP benefits are still set to be suspended on Saturday, Utahns who have a balance on their benefit cards can still use them, but no new deposits will be made until this is resolved.

“We want Gov. Cox to leverage his relationship with the president and get him to release these funds without delay,” Cornia said.

The governor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Contributing: Bridger Beal-Cvetko, KSL.com