San Antonio raises $1.6 million to help families in need as SNAP benefits expire

The San Antonio Food Bank said this week it is also anticipating an increase in demand. Credit: Instagram / San Antonio Food Bank

San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones said Friday that the city raised $1.6 million to support households and individuals reliant on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which the Trump White House will stop funding Nov. 1, KSAT reports.

Jones said the city will hand out $150 H-E-B cards to families in need, according to the TV station. The money, raised by the San Antonio Area Foundation, will be distributed by Metro Health and the city’s Human Services department.

More details about eligibility requirements will be released next week, KSAT further reported.

Word of the program comes as $50 million worth of community SNAP benefits are set to expire on Saturday because the administration says it can no longer fund them due to the ongoing government shutdown.

Jones said that the San Antonio program will aid nearly 11,000 families.

Even so, that number is still short of the 130,000 San Antonio families expected to lose access to food aid over the weekend.

Jones acknowledged that the funding isn’t a long-term solution but hopes it will help bridge the SNAP funding deficit until the government reopens, according to Spectrum 1.

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San Antonio raises $1.6 million to help families in need as SNAP benefits expire

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