SNAP

Kentucky Public Radio spoke with food banks across the state bracing for a surge in clients ahead of the Nov. 1 suspension of federal food assistance.

There are several levers federal and state officials could pull to keep 700,000 Tennesseans from losing food aid. But as of now, it seems no one is touching them.

Alongside Gov. Andy Beshear, more than two dozen Democratic attorneys general and governors are suing the Trump administration over plans to suspend food assistance benefits as the federal government shutdown drags on.

The continued government shutdown could interrupt food aid for 700,000 Tennesseans, putting beneficiaries at risk of missed meals and impossible finances.

Funding for food assistance benefits next month isn’t coming, Gov. Andy Beshear said, due to the federal government shutdown. Funding for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program is also delayed.

With food insecurity rising, Kentucky continues to aggressively investigate individuals on fraud allegations, with some legal experts claiming they rely too much on faulty evidence.

As lawmakers prepare Kentucky’s biennial budget for the 2026 legislative session, the state budget director says the Commonwealth will need to set aside over $115 million more than in previous years to keep giving its residents in need food stamps and – because of the federal reconciliation bill passed earlier this summer – potentially hundreds of millions of dollars on top of that.

Congress is considering major cuts to SNAP food assistance benefits. They could have an outsized impact in Appalachian Kentucky, where more than one in five rely on the benefits.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is allowing Kentucky residents use of its Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – known as D-SNAP – for those recovering from severe weather on May 16th.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — which helps more than one in 10 Tennesseans get groceries — is already in legal trouble in the state for delayed benefits and other mismanagement concerns. It could be soon be undergoing massive cuts.