Washington, D.C., will implement increases in its Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program after second-guessing from Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Roughly 140,000 D.C. residents rely on the program, according to Legal Aid DC. The boost for the program comes from $40 million of the city’s excess funds, a limited resource that Bowser hinted in December may be better spent elsewhere.
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“Should we advance a nine month benefit that goes away? Or should we work on something that’s more sustainable for more people? That’s the question I put to the Council,” she said, according to NBC4.
On Wednesday, however, the city decided to go through with the SNAP boost. D.C. Health and Human Services Director Laura Zeilinger explained the decision in a statement.
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“Due to major budget shortfalls and workload pressures, in November I advised the Mayor that it is in best interest of residents to prioritize sustaining vital human services programs, over administering a new temporary local SNAP supplement,” she said. “While fiscal and administrative pressures still exist, this evening I advised the Mayor that DHS will make this program work while we attempt to solve ongoing challenges.”
The decision was first announced by Legal Aid DC in response to a threatened lawsuit against Bowser over her seemingly impending decision to withhold the SNAP increase.
