Davis seeks $1 million to fill SNAP funding gap in Erie County during government shutdown

Erie County Executive Brenton Davis has announced an emergency proposal to allocate $1 million in county funds to help offset the loss of food assistance caused by the ongoing federal government shutdown.

The $1 million supplemental appropriation from the county’s general fund, which Davis said he sent to Erie County Council on Nov. 3, would go to Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania and serve to expand food distribution for residents affected by the suspension of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP benefits.

Davis said the funds would be drawn down on an as-needed basis and that Second Harvest’s purchasing power would multiply their impact — every $1 donated generates about $4 worth of food. The county’s proposed allocation, he said, would therefore produce about $4 million in food value for local families.

“This is a time for compassion, but it’s also a time for accountability,” Davis said at a Nov. 3 news conference announcing the proposal. “We’re judged as a society on how we treat our most vulnerable — our elderly, our kids, those that struggle in poverty, the disabled that can’t help themselves.”

Davis said funds will generate multiplied ‘food value’

Davis said the proposed $1 million infusion builds on earlier efforts by his administration to support Second Harvest. A county-funded television campaign launched this fall using $12,500 in American Rescue Plan dollars generated about $200,000 in private donations — the equivalent of $800,000 in food value, he said.

The county also received $131,000 in state assistance, which Davis said represents roughly $525,000 in additional food value for Second Harvest.

Altogether, Davis said those funds and the proposed county allocation total $1.33 million leveraged into about $5.3 million worth of food. He said that amount is enough to feed 200,000 people for three weeks or all 47,000 SNAP recipients in Erie County for about 12 weeks.

Second Harvest CEO says funds will directly support food purchases

Gregory Hall, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank, said the county’s proposal comes at a critical time for local families. “Not feeding people is not an option,” he said. “We will do whatever it takes to feed everyone that’s in need in Erie County.”

Hall said the food bank and its network of more than 180 food pantries and meal programs are working to ensure residents have access to food amid what he called an “unprecedented” crisis created by the combination of the federal shutdown, the state budget impasse, and the loss of SNAP funding.

“One in seven people in Erie County are food insecure, and one in five are children,” Hall said. “Over the last two years, we’ve seen an increase of almost 40% in the number of households we’re serving. That was before this emergency. We were already in a crisis — now the crisis has grown.”

He said the new funds would go directly toward food purchases to supply the food bank’s charitable network.

“For every $25 donated, we can provide enough food to feed an individual for three weeks,” Hall said. “These funds will allow us to get as much food as possible, as quickly as possible, to those who need it most.”

How to help

Nearly 18% of county residents — more than 47,000 people — receive SNAP benefits, according to the Food Research and Action Center. Those benefits total about $18.8 million a month countywide.

Hall urged residents to support the food bank through donations or volunteering. Those in need of assistance can find their nearest pantry through the food bank’s website, nwpafoodbank.org, or by calling its helpline at 814-459-3663, extension 117.