Attorney General Alan Wilson joins 18 attorneys general to urge Senate Leader to provide stopgap funding for SNAP

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson and 18 other state attorneys general are urging U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to act immediately to prevent the 42 million Americans who benefit from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) from going hungry.

In a letter to Schumer, the attorneys general warn that Washington’s political brinkmanship is putting working families, seniors, and people with disabilities at risk and call on Schumer to support a clean continuing resolution to keep the government open and SNAP funded.

“More than 260,000 South Carolinians rely on SNAP benefits to help feed their families, and they shouldn’t be worried about their kids going hungry because of this political standoff,” Attorney General Wilson said. “We’re urging Sen. Schumer and other Democrats to act quickly.”

The attorneys general write, “Congress can stop the threat right now by passing a clean continuing resolution that keeps essential services funded and protects those who rely on them. You have the power to prevent a crisis that is entirely avoidable.”

The letter follows a notice from the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicating that SNAP benefits will not be issued on Nov. 1 if the shutdown persists. The attorneys general call on Schumer “to do what you know is right” by temporarily funding the program.

“Letting those benefits lapse while political negotiations drag on would send the wrong message to every working parent and senior who plays by the rules,” the attorneys general write in their letter.

The government has been shut down since October 1 because Senate Democrats refused to pass a clean Continuing Resolution twelve times, which, during the Biden Administration, they voted for thirteen times.

Joining Attorney General Wilson and Attorney General Yost in signing the letter to Schumer were the attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia.

You can read the letter here.