{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press/booker-klobuchar-condemn-trump-decision-to-withhold-snap-contingency-funds", "Booker, Klobuchar Condemn Trump Decision to Withhold SNAP Contingency Funds", "2025-10-29", "2025", "2025-10", "Democrat", "Senate", "NJ", "Cory A. Booker", "B001288", "www.booker.senate.gov", "booker", "https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) sent a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins condemning the Department\u2019s cruel decision not to use available contingency funds to extend SNAP benefits into November, despite having the legal authority to do so. This decision threatens access to critical food assistance benefits for 42 million Americans.\n\nThe letter challenges a recent USDA memo stating that \u201ccontingency funds are not legally available to cover regular benefits,\u201d noting that this directly conflicts with prior Department guidance. Last month, the USDA\u2019s 2025 Lapse in Appropriations plan, which is now removed from the Department\u2019s website, stated:\n\n\u201cCongressional intent is evident that SNAP\u2019s operations should continue since the program has been provided with multi-year contingency funds that can be used for State Administrative Expenses to ensure that the State can also continue operations during a Federal Government shutdown. These multi-year contingency funds are also available to fund participant benefits in the event that a lapse occurs in the middle of the fiscal year.\u201d\n\nHistorical guidance from President Trump\u2019s 2018\u201319 government shutdown similarly allowed SNAP contingency funds to process applications accepted after the expiration of a continuing resolution.\n\n\u201cThe removal of this language from USDA\u2019s website, and recent statements from your Administration raise serious concerns about whether the Department plans to unjustly terminate SNAP payments,\u201d the Senators wrote. \u201cAny politically motivated decisions to stop SNAP payments are unacceptable.\u201d\n\nThe Senators also demanded \u201cthe Department immediately provide a complete and detailed legal analysis of your decision to not release the contingency funding for SNAP, including who authorized the removal of past guidance from the USDA\u2019s website.\u201d\n\n\u201cGiven the USDA\u2019s prior interpretations of the law relating to the use of contingency funding, the recent decision not to fund November benefits seems designed to manufacture a crisis. Using the USDA\u2019s existing contingency funding remains the quickest way to ensure that 42 million Americans receive food assistance in the month of November. We urge you to release this funding immediately,\u201d the Senators concluded.\n\nTo read the full text of the letter, click here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:32:54Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press/booker-klobuchar-condemn-trump-decision-to-withhold-snap-contingency-funds"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5297019854187965, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}