Nearly two million Illinois residents face losing access to critical food assistance next month if the ongoing federal government shutdown is not resolved, according to a recent alert issued by the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The agencies warned that November Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits will be cut off unless Congress and the Trump administration reach an agreement to reopen the government and approve necessary funding by November 1.
Illinois, which administers more than $350 million in SNAP benefits each month, supports around 1.9 million individuals—representing one million households completely reliant on the program for basic nutritional needs. SNAP households across the state include some of the most vulnerable populations: 37% have older adults, 45% have children, and 44% have a person with disabilities. The average monthly benefit is approximately $370 per household.
“The SNAP program is one of the most successful anti-hunger initiatives in history, ensuring recipients don’t have to choose between feeding their family or affording other household needs such as medicine or utilities,” said Rob Karr, president and CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association. “With grocers in many communities already struggling to keep their doors open, the elimination of this vital support puts entire communities at risk of losing access to fresh and healthy food. We urge the federal leaders to work collaboratively to ensure this assistance doesn’t lapse.”
SNAP is entirely funded by the federal government, meaning Illinois does not have the budget capacity to cover the shortfall if funding is withheld. IDHS stressed that without immediate federal action, there will be no new food benefits distributed to SNAP recipients starting November 1.
Nationally, this will affect 42 million Americans nationwide.
The dire situation affects roughly one in eight Americans who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to purchase groceries. In fiscal year 2024, SNAP served an average of 41.7 million participants per month at a federal cost of approximately $100 billion annually, with benefits averaging $188 per person monthly.
The monthly cost of SNAP benefits is approximately $8 billion. While the program maintains a contingency reserve fund, estimates place it between $4 billion and $6 billion—insufficient to cover a full month of benefits.
