The Delaware County Board of Commissioners on Oct. 27 voted unanimously to send a letter urging federal elected officials to resolve the ongoing federal government shutdown, after county staff outlined how the funding lapse could affect local residents.

Job and Family Services Director Bob Anderson told commissioners the shutdown will halt benefit issuance for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program beginning Nov. 1 unless the federal funding lapse is resolved. Anderson said that would affect “about 3,178 cases in Delaware County, a total of 6,300 people,” and he provided a breakdown he described as 3,694 adults and 2,643 children. He said the county issued roughly $1.2 million in SNAP benefits in September and that the average benefit was about $375 per household, with minimums as low as $24 and some households receiving more than $1,500.

"That's going to be devastating to these individuals and families who are not going to see the benefit," Anderson said, and noted 35% of recipients nationally in the most recent federal data were working families and 43% were elderly or disabled—figures he cited to emphasize the diversity of SNAP recipients.

Brian Gallagher, director of the County Veterans Service Office, told the board the military was paid in mid-October but warned of an uncertain outlook for future pay cycles and for some reservists whose health-care coverage and pay could be affected if orders and funding do not resume. He said the county veterans office is prepared to provide financial hardship assistance if payments are delayed.

County staff notified commissioners the state has funding only through mid-November to provide the federal match to counties, and that the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services had a deadline of Oct. 29 to load benefits for November. Staff said if the shutdown continues beyond those timelines, November benefit issuances would not occur.

The board's approved letter, identified in the meeting as Resolution 25-860, says the commissioners "urge our federal elected officials to continue their hard work, mindful that this crisis has a ripple effect throughout the national, state, and local economic ecosystems," and asks for a swift resolution given local reliance on those programs. Commissioners voted Aye: Barb Lewis, Gary Merrill and Jeff Benton.

Commissioners and staff also discussed local food pantries and the likelihood of increased demand if SNAP benefits are delayed or not issued. Staff encouraged charitable support to local pantries to help fill short-term gaps while benefits are unavailable.

The commissioners' action was procedural approval of the letter; no new county policy or additional emergency funding was adopted at the meeting.