Gov. Patrick Morrisey and the West Virginia National Guard provided an update Tuesday morning on food distribution efforts at a press conference at the Step by Step Family Support Center in Charleston. (Photo by Steven Allen Adams)

CHARLESTON — It is yet unclear how quickly reduced Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits will be available for West Virginians, with President Donald Trump contradicting his U.S. Department of Agriculture in whether to comply with a federal court order to partially fund the benefits.

Gov. Patrick Morrisey and West Virginia National Guard Adj. Gen. James Seward provided an update Tuesday on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and food distribution efforts to state and local food banks during an event at the Step by Step Family Support Center on Charleston’s West Side.

National Guard soldiers and airmen also dropped off non-perishable food across the street at the West Side Family Resource Center.

“I’ve said at the very beginning that we are not going to let West Virginians go hungry,” Morrisey said. “Let everyone else politic and do their nonsense, but we’re always going to be out in front of this…We’re going to do things the right way, and we have good partnerships, and we look out for West Virginians. Period.”

On Friday, a federal judge in Rhode Island ordered the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) to use nearly $5 billion in contingency funds appropriated by Congress to make either full or partial SNAP payments to states.

The West Virginia National Guard dropped off non-perishable food to the West Side Family Resource Center in Charleston Tuesday morning. (Photo by Steven Allen Adams)

In a court filing Monday, the USDA said it will fulfill its obligation to expend the full amount of SNAP contingency funds immediately and authorize states to begin disbursements. But the $5 billion will only cover half of the cost of SNAP benefits for November. In West Virginia, that is approximately $25 million.

The USDA issued official notice and revised issuance tables to the states detailing the percentage by which maximum SNAP allotments must be reduced. According to Morrisey, the state Department of Human Services (DoHS) received its official notice from the USDA on Tuesday morning.

State agencies must recode their eligibility systems to calculate the reduced benefit amounts for every certified household, with approximately 270,000 West Virginians relying on SNAP. These new benefit amounts would then be sent to electronic benefit transfer (EBT) processors in “issuance files.”

Morrisey said DoHS officials were working on the calculations for the reduced benefit amounts which could take between four and seven days. The electronic benefit transfer processing services company West Virginia and other states use — Fidelity Information Services — is unable to accept direct state funding towards EBT cards held by SNAP recipients in West Virginia.

“Our Human Services department is unpacking that right now,” Morrisey said. “Obviously, the most recent news is that 50% will get loaded. There’s no clear date in terms of exactly when that would start…We’re talking about hungry West Virginians. I want the vendors to be pushing very, very hard. I’m going to keep challenging them to do everything they possibly can.”

However, more than an hour after Tuesday’s press conference, Trump posted on social media that he would not comply with the federal court order until the Democratic caucus in the U.S. Senate agreed to vote to re-open the federal government.

“SNAP BENEFITS, which increased by Billions and Billions of Dollars (MANY FOLD!) during Crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous term in office…will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” Trump said.

A White House spokesperson tried to walk back Trump’s comments later Tuesday afternoon according to Politico.

Meanwhile, U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. scheduled a hearing Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island at the request of the plaintiffs in the SNAP lawsuit, who are seeking an order requiring the USDA to fully fund SNAP for November using Section 32 Child Nutrition Program funds for the full payment.

Last week, Morrisey announced that the state has up to $13 million in contingency funding left over from the COVID-19 pandemic it was willing to distribute evenly between the state’s two largest food banks – Mountaineer Food Bank in Gassaway and Facing Hunger Foodbank in Huntington. That followed the expediting of $1.1 million already appropriated to the two food banks by the Legislature for the current fiscal year

The state has already distributed from the Governor’s Civil Contingency Fund $7.5 million to date, taking the total dollar amount distributed to the two food banks to $8.6 million. Morrisey said Tuesday that another $2.5 million could be distributed to the two food banks by Thursday. Both Mountaineer Food Bank and Facing Hunger Foodbank are using the funding to buy food and also distribute funds to smaller food banks and pantries across West Virginia.

“Here is the good news. The money that we’ve put out is covering the immediate needs of the food banks and the food pantries, and also the anticipated needs in the upcoming days,” Morrisey said. “It’s making a big difference. It’s direct, it’s fast, and it’s ensuring we’re staying ahead all the time.”

“Our agency relations team is fielding calls from our pantries, working on getting those dollars throughout the communities in West Virginia that need the ability to purchase food to meet that additional food access need,” said Caitlin Cook, the director of advocacy and public policy for Mountaineer Food Bank. “I know our food pantries, community partners, and other agencies, they are extremely grateful for that cash infusion and food purchasing power.”

The National Guard has been instrumental in helping state and local food banks with manpower, distribution and logistics. According to Seward, more than 200 National Guard soldiers and airmen have been activated, delivering 6,653 boxes of food to pantries across the state and another 3,936 boxes directly to citizens at pop-up food pantries.

“They’ve been on the ground providing logistics, management, and support to food pantries across the state,” Seward said. “They’re helping to receive sort, package, transport, and distribute food, and keeping things safe and orderly…We see that kind of dedication every single day with these amazing men and women, and West Virginians are very, very proud of you.”

Morrisey also urged West Virginians to donate to Mountaineer Food Bank and Facing Hunger Foodbank to help match the state’s $14.1 million commitment. To date, more than $300,000 has been raised through monetary donations to the two food banks and approximately $400,000 in in-kind donations of food. Those wishing to donate can go to a landing page at governor.wv.gov to be directed to one of the two food banks.

Officials continue to urge West Virginians needing assistance with finding food to call the state’s 211 hotline or visit WV211.org. Operators at 211 fielded more than 600 phone calls over the weekend.

Morrisey said again Tuesday that if it looked like the state would exceed its $14 million commitment to the food banks, he would call the West Virginia Legislature into special session to pass supplemental appropriation bills to provide additional funding. But long-term, Morrisey said the current plan to assist food banks is unsustainable and Congress needed to re-open the federal government.

“The government needs to open up,” Morrisey said. “There’s a swift way to put an end to the shutdown. What we’re doing is the state is stepping in to solve Washington dysfunction. We’re doing that and West Virginians are stepping up, but I think we all want the shutdown to come to an end.”