Food assistance benefiting more than 40 million Americans will not be distributed beginning in November due to the ongoing U.S. government shutdown, according to the USDA.
“Ultimately, the well ran dry,” the department said on its website, also blaming Senate Democrats for the impasse.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap) is used by one in eight Americans and plays a vital role in many grocery store budgets.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration refused to tap into a reserve fund that could continue paying benefits, saying the money was needed for potential emergencies such as natural disasters.
Democrats condemned President Donald Trump for refusing to use the reserve fund.
“This is perhaps the most brutal and illegal crime the Trump administration has ever committed,” Congresswomen Rosa DeLauro and Angie Craig said in a joint statement Friday.
They also criticized Trump for providing aid to Argentina and building a new White House ballroom during the quarantine.
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), a think tank focused on policies that help low-income families, The reserve fund will cover only about 60% of monthly benefits.however.
In a letter sent to the Agriculture Department on Friday, House Democrats said there was still “substantial funding available in Snap's contingency reserve – which Congress is providing for this very reason – that could be used to fund most of the November benefits.”
They asked Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to release the reserves and then transfer other available money to her department to fully fund the program for a month.
In a memo obtained by US media, Rollins said the reserve could only be used in “true emergencies”, mainly natural disasters.
Previously in his Shutdown plan publishedHer office said it would not allow a small number of employees to take leave to implement the program, noting that Congress created “multi-year reserve funds” to ensure states could continue distributing benefits.
Snap works by providing people with reloadable debit cards that they can use to buy the products they need.
According to CBPP, a family of four receives an average of $715 (£540) a month, which works out to just under $6 (£4.50) a day per person.
States administer the programs, with most funding coming from the federal government.
Several states have pledged to use their own funds to cover the shortfall, but the federal government has warned they will not be reimbursed.
Some, including Massachusetts, where one million people are expected to lose benefits, said they don't have enough money to make up the shortfall.
Many states are working with people at Snap to try to identify food pantries and find alternative food sources, and California is deploying its National Guard to help distribute food.
The US government shutdown entered its 26th day on Sunday, making it the second-longest shutdown in history.
