Wednesday's order offers support for Illinois farmers and their families. His order Thursday will direct the state to work with food banks and pantries, grocers, universities and others to mitigate cuts to the federal food assistance program.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — more commonly known as SNAP, or food stamps — is a key benefits program that serves more than 40 million people across the country. Now, the shutdown is threatening to suspend benefits, raising concerns over where millions of people who rely on the program will turn to for food.

Food assistance advocates and state officials acknowledged that the state funds to food banks would not be enough to fill the gap left by shutting off federal funds. Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton called the funding “a drop in the bucket” at a news conference Thursday morning.

Nearly 2 million Illinois residents depend on SNAP to help pay for groceries. As the government shutdown continues, they’re scrambling to find other ways to feed their families.

Nearly 2 million people in Illinois may lose food assistance starting Saturday because of the government shutdown. The state and food pantries say they can’t match the $350 million that SNAP provides each month.

Raoul joins SNAP benefits lawsuit Attorney General Kwame Raoul today joined a coalition of 26 attorneys general and governors in filing a lawsuit against the U. S.

As of this writing, SNAP recipients have less than 48 hours before they lose their benefits on Nov. 1 as a result of the protracted government shutdown. Of course, SNAP benefits tie directly into folks’ ability to feed themselves and their families,

The USDA will suspend SNAP benefits starting November 1 due to the ongoing government shutdown. Approximately 42 million Americans currently receive monthly SNAP benefits. A coalition of 26 states and territories is suing the federal government over the suspension.