“Americans should be looking forward to spending time together during holidays, not worrying about whether critical government services will be suspended,” said Gromley.
Contact: Ryan Flaherty, rflaherty@strength.org
12/20/24, WASHINGTON, DC — Congress has until midnight to pass a temporary funding measure and avert a painful federal government shutdown. A shutdown would create uncertainty, delay important government services and, if it drags on, could disrupt programs like SNAP and WIC. The following is a statement from Jason Gromley, Senior Director for Share Our Strength and its No Kid Hungry campaign:
“Congress only has a few hours to pass a funding measure to avoid a catastrophic government shutdown. Failure to do this will pointlessly hurt millions of Americans and a prolonged shutdown could jeopardize important assistance programs like SNAP and WIC.
“It’s a shame that partisan politics might override one of Congress’s essential duties—funding the government. At the end of the year, Americans should be looking forward to spending time together during holidays, not worrying about whether critical government services will be suspended.
”As part of the funding bill, Congress needs to include a Farm Bill extension and continued protections for victims of SNAP skimming in order to protect farmers, families and communities until a full Farm Bill reauthorization can be enacted in the new year.
“Families deserve stability, not chaos and confusion. The only reasonable path forward today includes passing a bipartisan funding measure that keeps the lights on and keeps important programs functioning. Then, Congress must come together in the new year to pass a full appropriations package and Farm Bill Reauthorization that funds the policies and programs that help feed kids, support families and strengthen communities.”
###
About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids in the United States live with hunger. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty.