WASHINGTON D.C., DC — As families brace for the potential financial strains of a possible government shutdown, the DMV's largest food bank says they are prepared to help federal workers facing furloughs or families seeing an end to food assistance programs.
Under a 2019 law, federal employees that are furloughed are slated to receive backpay however, for some households missing a check means cutting on essentials, according to the Capital Area Food Bank's President and CEO Radha Muthiah.
"Out of the 350,000 federal government workers across the DMV, there would be around 100,000 who earn about $90,000 or less in their jobs in the federal government. That is the group we are most concerned about," Muthiah told WUSA9. She says these federal workers tend to be the primary providers for their households.
But federal employees are not the only people that might be in need of food assistance in the event of a shutdown.
The U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said that the majority of the 7 million women and children who participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program would see an immediate suspension of their benefits after a shutdown.
"Some states may have leftover WIC benefits that have not been spent which could extend it for a week or so in that state. But the vast majority of WIC participants would see an immediate reduction and elimination of those benefits," Vilsack says.
The latest data from the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicates that in the DMV nearly 262,000 women and children participate in the WIC program.
- District of Columbia- 11,718
- Maryland- 123,101
- Virginia- 127,124
Muthiah estimates that 70,000 SNAP participants live in the region her organization serves.
A separate benefits program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), will continue as normal for the month of October, but White House officials warn that it could be impacted afterwards.
Muthiah says they did not account for a government shutdown in this year's annual budget. However in the event of a shutdown she says the Capital Area Foodbank is ready to provide groceries at pop-up locations for federal employees as soon as next week (like they did during 2018-2019 shutdown). If a shutdown occurs, the information for the distribution locations and times will be up on the foodbank's website.
Amid the uncertainty that hundreds of thousands of families are facing, Muthiah says people potentially impacted should create a plan now. "Look at budgets again. Understand how certain portions, certain key expenses like rent, childcare, transportation can be covered," she says.
The increase demand would mean that the food bank would need additional volunteers to pack groceries and also donations to purchase the food needed by those impacted by the possible government shutdown.
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