The San Miguel County Board of County Commissioners on Oct. 22 held a special meeting to discuss a federal pause on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits that will affect Colorado and an estimated 170 households in San Miguel County.

Human services director Linnea told the board that on Oct. 10 federal nutrition officials notified states of a hold on November SNAP payments because of the federal government shutdown, a lapse that she said affects roughly 600,000 Coloradans and leaves local staff scrambling to connect affected households with emergency food resources. “This is something the state of Colorado and San Miguel San Miguel County don't have control over,” Linnea said.

County officials said the state Department of Human Services will continue to process applications and eligibility reviews but will place payments on hold until federal funding resumes. Linnea said the county has begun directing SNAP recipients to local food pantries and coordinating with Food Bank of the Rockies, which county staff said has the capacity to increase bulk distributions to rural pantries. “They are ready and and able to to try to just mass distribute food to all the food pantries across The States,” she said.

Why it matters: Commissioners and nonprofit partners said the pause could create a sharp, short-term spike in demand at pantries that already report rising use. April Montgomery, representing a local foundation, told the board that pantries in the county’s service area are serving roughly 2,000 individuals this year and have reported about a 30% increase in use since the start of the year.

Details and local planning
- Local impact: County staff provided the board an estimate of about 170 SNAP households in San Miguel County. Linnea said the state average household receives about $300 a month in SNAP benefits but noted individual households vary widely, from as little as $24 to more than $500 monthly. She warned that most households spend benefits early in the month: “about 80% of our households spend their EBT in the first 2 weeks,” and by the last week about 95% have used the month’s benefits.
- Existing balances: Linnea told the board that any SNAP funds already loaded on EBT cards remain usable; the pause affects future scheduled payments. The state is continuing normal application processing and redeterminations, she said, but withheld payments will appear only after federal funding is restored, possibly with a distribution lag.
- Outreach and communications: County staff said CDHS (Colorado Department of Human Services) pushed speed letters, banner notices, texts and email guidance through CBMS to SNAP recipients, and the county has posted banners and office signs. Officials also said Tri County Health sent a resource email to service providers and that the county will run local messaging through its website, newspapers and social channels.
- Food pantry coordination: County staff and the Telluride-area foundation said they are working with the Telluride and Norwood pantries and with Food Bank of the Rockies to estimate additional food needs, adjust orders and identify volunteer capacity. Linnea said county staff would crunch caseload data and attempt a ZIP-code breakdown to give pantries a target figure for extra food ordering.
- Short-term money: Nonprofit and county speakers discussed fundraising and emergency county funds. April Montgomery said her foundation is seeking donor gifts and grant awards (decisions pending) and recommended cash donations to local organizations rather than cans, because of food‑bank buying power. County staff said the human services general assistance fund is typically about $9,000 a year and suggested it could be considered for small emergency uses. Commissioners also discussed possibly using available TANF funds in the short term but noted TANF eligibility limits and competing needs that could complicate that option.
- Fundraising target: Commissioners and partners discussed aiming for a local philanthropic target in the low tens of thousands to cover a month of increased pantry demand; participants suggested a planning range of about $25,000 to $50,000 as an initial estimate while the pantries provide wholesale-cost numbers.

Discussion vs. decision: The meeting produced no formal policy change on SNAP (the pause reflects federal action). Commissioners directed staff to collect ZIP-code‑level caseload figures, work with pantries and Food Bank of the Rockies to estimate wholesale food needs, coordinate volunteer recruitment and messaging, and convene follow-up meetings with pantries and municipal partners. Linnea agreed to return to the board with updated numbers and recommended actions.

What’s next: County staff said they will meet with the pantries early in the following week to refine estimates and expected capacity, and they placed a placeholder for a follow-up report to the board. Officials said they will continue local outreach and fundraising efforts while monitoring CDHS communications and federal developments.