Western Mass. Food Pantries Expecting Influx After SNAP Changes

Food pantries in western Massachusettts are expecting an influx of clients as a result of the Trump Administraton's latest cuts to the federal food stamp program known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

In 1996, welfare reform limited food stamps to three months every three years for most adults without dependents who don't work.

But many people in high-unemployment areas were exempt from those rules.

Starting in April, the Trump Administration will dramatically tighten those exemptions.

As a result, Christina Maxwell from the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts expects about 10,000 more people in the region, out of about 250,000 total, to rely on local food pantries. That estimate is based on figures from the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute.

And while the state helps pay to stock the food bank, Maxwell said its warehouse and available trucks can't take on much more.

"So even if there were enough food available, our network just couldn't move that much, that would be enough to make up for this gap," she said.

Maxwell said the areas affected by the change include Hampden County and northern Berkshire County, as well as southeastern Massachusetts and parts of Cape Cod. Those areas tend to have higher unemployment and seasonal employment like agriculture and tourism, which make it harder to meet food stamp rules.

The changes to SNAP go into effect in April, so the Food Bank is expecting the biggest influx of hungry people three months later in July — when their benefits run out.

Maxwell said the Food Bank is still trying to figure out how to accommodate the additional people they expect will need food.

The Trump Administration is also considering two additional changes to the SNAP program to limit food stamps.