BUTTE — As the government shutdown heads into its second month, millions of Americans are facing the loss of food benefits. A Butte family is one of the over 77,000 Montana families grappling with this hard reality.
"Hunger, for me, is digging in trash cans for food. Having your stomach just hurt — physically hurting — because you are so hungry. Mentally, it hurts," says Angela Madsen.
Madsen and her wife, Jeanette Nedbalek, have a combined yearly income of around $55,000 that supports four children ranging in age from 5 years to 15 years old.
Last February, the family became unable to afford rent and moved into the Butte Rescue Mission. Just one month before the government shutdown, the family became eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Butte family shares story of hunger amid government shutdown and SNAP benefit cuts
"I mean, we work two full-time jobs, and we still struggle, so I don’t think working more would actually be the answer," says Jeanette Nedbalek.
Nedbalek says that the rising cost of rent, bills, and food has become a cruel balancing act for her family.
"Our minimum wage is still pretty low. It doesn’t even balance out. So, it puts more of that weight on, you know, having to figure out, am I going to feed my kids or am I going to put gas in my car?"
Last week, before SNAP assistance was cut off, Representative Donavon Hawk, D-Butte, stood with other state Democratic lawmakers to voice concern for families like Angela's and Jeanette's.
In a response to the democratic lawmakers' press conference that was held in Butte, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte put the blame for the loss of food funding on congressional democrats and declined to offer state funding for SNAP.
"He did say that this is not the responsibility of the state for a federal program. I believe at the end of the day that this isn’t about politics. This isn’t about left or right. This is about right or wrong, and it’s about getting food for the families that need it and the kids that need it," says Rep. Hawk.
In an email statement to MTN News, Governor Gianforte said:
"SNAP is a program which the federal government designed, administers, and funds. It is the federal government's responsibility, not that of states or local jurisdictions. While the governor believes these benefits are vital for vulnerable Montanans, he has been clear that the state cannot fund this federal program, which is funded by federal dollars, without guarantees for reimbursement. When it comes down to it, Senate Democrats have voted 14 times to stop paychecks for troops and law enforcement, to halt support for our veterans and seniors, and to leave over 77,000 vulnerable Montanans without food assistance – the simplest solution to Senate Democrats’ failure is for them to stop playing political games with people’s lives and fund the government right now."
Rep. Hawk says that food and benefits are being used for political leverage and that the state $268 million sitting in a trust could be used to support working families who need food assistance.
The United States Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Services issued a statement on Nov. 3 stating that federal emergency funds will be used to issue partial SNAP benefits during the month of November.
On Monday, the Trump administration said it will use a contingency fund to partially pay out SNAP benefits in November after rulings from two federal judges. It is unclear when the funds will be disbursed, with the USDA warning that there could be delays.
The ongoing government shutdown caused the funding lapse affecting more than 40 million Americans who rely on food assistance programs.
