If the federal government shutdown continues into November, more than 22,000 people across Carroll, Benton, Henry, Weakley, Gibson, and Henderson counties could lose access to food assistance, totaling to $4.35 million in monthly benefits.
According to the Tennessee Department of Human Services (TDHS), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits were issued as normal for October. However, the agency announced that if the shutdown persists, no federal funds will be available to issue November benefits.
The six-county region received more than $4.3 million in SNAP benefits in September, supporting over 11,000 households.
Gibson County had the highest total issuance at $1.17 million, followed by Henry County at $800,798 and Carroll County at $678,345.
TDHS reported that more than 690,000 Tennesseans received SNAP benefits in September, totaling $145.8 million statewide. Nationally, 1 in 8 people receive SNAP, which is more than 40 million Americans.
| County | # of Individual Recipients | # of Households | Total Benefit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carroll | 3532 | 1743 | $678,345 |
| Benton | 2082 | 1077 | $409,651 |
| Henry | 4007 | 2050 | $800,798 |
| Weakley | 3281 | 1650 | $637,889 |
| Gibson | 5830 | 2874 | $1,172,108 |
| Henderson | 3302 | 1642 | $654,801 |
| 22,034 | 11,036 | $4,353,592 |
Potential Local Impact
If the shutdown extends, and payments aren’t dispersed, these SNAP dollars, which are typically spent locally, would vanish from the regional economy.
Grocery stores and other businesses that rely heavily on SNAP transactions could feel the effects almost immediately, alongside the thousands of families who depend on the program.
The Tennessee Department of Human Services has advised households to continue submitting renewal and review information as usual, but cautioned that staff will not have information beyond October unless Congress authorizes continued funding.
The last comparable shutdown to threaten SNAP operations occurred in early 2019, when emergency funding was issued at the last minute to prevent disruption.
If no similar stopgap is passed this time, November could mark the first missed payment in the program’s history.
For now, TDHS says it is closely monitoring the situation and will update its public information page as developments unfold.
Local Changes to Food Distribution
In addition to the possibility of delayed SNAP benefits, changes have been made to how commodity food is distributed locally.
Jennifer Thornton, Volunteer and Community Engagement Coordinator at Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee’s R. M. Smith Family Distribution Center in Camden, said that while Second Harvest is not losing any funding due to the shutdown, some federal food distribution programs have changed.
“The federal government will redirect USDA commodities, also known as The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) foods, from community action agencies directly to food banks,” Thornton said. “That means quarterly distributions through local economic development councils have ended, but the same food is still reaching families through our partner agencies.”
Thornton added that while the change may cause confusion for residents accustomed to the older distribution model, the goal is to make food available more consistently.
“Instead of waiting for a quarterly event, people can now access those USDA foods through our partner agencies as needed,” she explained. “Anyone in need of food can visit our website, click ‘Find Food,’ and search by ZIP code to see local distribution sites.”
The website Thornton mentioned can accessed here.
Food Insecurity Survey
A separate federal decision could make it harder for food banks and researchers to track the fallout of these changes.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s decision to discontinue the Household Food Security Survey removes a widely used data source in local hunger research.
The survey’s results were used by food banks, researchers, and state agencies to assess local needs, apply for grants, and target resources to the most vulnerable communities.
Thornton said the loss of this data will likely create new challenges for organizations on the ground.
“Those surveys provided statistical data we could use to apply for grants, identify problem areas, and measure impact,” she said. “Without them, we’ll have to do our own investigating, which means more boots on the ground to figure out what food insecurity really looks like in our region.”
Experts have cautioned that the absence of this consistent national benchmark will make it harder to measure hunger trends, particularly during times of federal funding disruption.
For local food banks and community programs, it means relying more on self-reported data, local surveys, and anecdotal information to determine where and how to direct assistance.
