November funds for food assistance have been placed on hold in Colorado during to the federal government shutdown. In Montezuma County, about 5,000 people have received government food aid since 2024.
An announcement Friday from the Office of Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said that statewide, more than 600,000 people who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, could lose access to benefits. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which normally distributes SNAP funds, has withheld funding used by states to reload Electronic Benefit Transfer cards.
“Colorado families and children could go hungry without access to SNAP and the State of Colorado cannot fund this federal initiative to the tune of $120 million per month or $1.48 billion per year,” the announcement reads.
Montezuma County is advising current SNAP recipients with rollover funds on their EBT cards to use that money before Nov. 1.
Montezuma County is advising current SNAP recipients with rollover funds on their EBT cards to use that money before Nov. 1.
A release from Montezuma County says that even if the shutdown ends before Nov. 1, benefits will still be delayed.
Residents with immediate needs can access food resources across the county. Information is available online for each provider. Examples include Good Sam’s Food Pantry, Mancos Foodshare, Dolores Family Project, Hope’s Kitchen and Grace’s Kitchen.
The county encourages food donations to local pantries and notes “financial donations go further because food pantries can purchase supplies at lower costs through their established contracts.”
Officials are assessing next steps and potential solutions.
“The Montezuma County Department of Social Services is following the situation closely and working with local partners to have plans in place if the shutdown continues through October,” read a news release shared Friday afternoon by Vicki Shaffer, Montezuma County public information officer.
“We’re working with social services and local food providers to make sure everybody gets what they need,” said Kirby Foster, director of Good Sam’s Food Pantry in Cortez.
Colorado state officials are working on solutions to the SNAP freeze, the governor’s announcement said.
According to data on SNAP collected by the Colorado Dept. of Human Services, 5,049 individual clients used the program’s services since 2024, totaling close to $885,000 dollars in food assistance money issued.
A community health assessment released this year by the Montezuma County Public Health Department also shows that food access in the area is a pressing issue.
“A notable 84% of local survey respondents identified lowering food costs as one of the greatest needs in the community, which was the highest percentage response to any question in the survey,” the assessment reads.
