Louisiana, SNAP and food stamps
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A protracted shutdown of federal government is withholding food benefits from 1.5M LA County residents, who may not have food for their families.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced there will be no money to fund the SNAP food stamp program next month.
The move makes Louisiana the only state in the Gulf South attempting to fund SNAP benefits for residents next month amid the ongoing federal government shutdown.
The states petitioned a federal court days after the Agriculture Dept. said it would not take emergency steps to provide aid during the government shutdown.
As the federal government shutdown drags on, concern is growing about interrupting SNAP benefits, which help pay for groceries for roughly 800,000 people in Louisiana.