As thousands of families struggle with the cost of putting food on the table, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is at odds with members of the D.C. Council and advocates over whether to use nearly $40 million in surplus funds to temporarily increase SNAP benefits.
About 140,000 people in D.C. receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance benefits, often called food stamps. Last March, families saw their benefits decrease after federal pandemic relief funding ran out.
To fill that gap, the D.C. Council passed legislation that requires the mayor to use about $38 million to increase those benefits for nine months if the District had a budget surplus. The District did end the last fiscal year with a surplus, but so far Bowser has refused to use the funds to increase SNAP benefits.
Council members have urged the mayor to comply with the law. Ward 4 Council member Janeese Lewis George called Bowser’s refusal unlawful, and At-Large Council member Robert White said it’s irresponsible.
Bowser pushed back last week, questioning whether putting the $38 million toward SNAP was the best use of the money.
“How can we best use that $38 million for the same people?” she asked.
“Is this the best way? Is it better to use it for [Temporary Assistance for Needy Families] increases that affect more people? Is it better to use it for a summer benefits program where the federal government can be a partner?” she continued.
In an opinion, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb wrote, “The mayor must expend the funds as the council directed and cannot unilaterally use them for another purpose.”
Bowser told reporters she’s in talks with council members about how to best use the surplus funds.
“We do have some questions that come from our agencies. Should we advance a nine-month benefit that goes away, or should we work on something that’s more sustainable for more people?” she said.
“Those are our questions, and that’s the question I put to the council. I have not advanced the reprogramming, which is why I say nothing needs to be restored, but I do think it’s responsible to have that conversation,” she added.
Some advocacy groups have threatened to take the mayor to court to compel her to put the $38 million toward SNAP benefits.
The legislation had called for the SNAP benefits to increase beginning in January, but that seems unlikely, given the mayor has yet to reprogram the surplus funds.
