With America soon entering week four of the federal shutdown, more Kentuckians could be paying the price.
That’s according to Governor Andy Beshear, who during a Monday afternoon news briefing delivered critical updates on both the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families appropriations, as well as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits.
Beshear noted that the Commonwealth’s budget is prepared to “temporarily cover” TANF through November. The state, he said, receives support from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in order to help struggling families for a limited period.
As of Tuesday morning, Kentucky had not received funding for the month of November due to the ongoing federal shutdown.
Assurances to cover December, he added, cannot be made.
This use of state funds should prevent any disruption in assistance, and recipients should use their current benefits as normal. Updates can be found on the Department for Community Based Services (DCBS) website, on their Self-Service Portal (SSP) account, and through official DCBS notifications, text messages or emails.
Meanwhile, more than 600,000 Kentuckians rely on some level of SNAP benefits. That’s 12.5% of the state.
Due to the shutdown, the USDA has prohibited all funding of the program in November.
At present, Beshear said SNAP recipients can use current benefits as normal, but noted next month could be a “scary, stressful time” for families. He said state authorities remain “committed” to processing benefits the moment the federal shutdown ends, and funding becomes available.
Each of these concerns comes as the Executive Branch and Kentucky General Assembly work to navigate a reported $300 million budget shortfall, while agreeing to release $9.1 million to the Department of Aging and Independent Living for end-of-fiscal-year funding for the expanded senior home-delivered meals program.
It also comes less than three months away from legislators bringing gavel to the 2026-28 biennium budget session in Frankfort, where Beshear said some “hard conversations” could be on the way.
The top banner of the usda.gov website reads: “Due to the Radical Left Democrat shutdown, this government website will not be updated during the funding lapse. President [Donald] Trump has made it clear he wants to keep the government open and support those who feed, fuel and clothe the American people.”
