Gov. Landry announces state-funded temporary SNAP assistance for elderly, disabled and children

Gov. Landry announced that Louisiana will temporarily use state funds to continue food assistance for priority SNAP recipients after the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed new federal SNAP benefits would not be added starting Nov. 1 if the federal government remains closed.

Landry said he issued an emergency declaration on Oct. 23 that allows the state to tap its own funds to ensure households that include elderly people, people with disabilities and children continue to receive assistance. "This declaration allows us to tap into state funds to continue to provide food assistance for the elderly, the disabled, and children," he said.

The governor said the state has reviewed recipient demographics and will prioritize EBT card loads on the existing distribution schedule: "The first 4 days of the month, those beneficiaries who are elderly and disabled have their cards loaded," and those groups will be prioritized under the temporary program. He told reporters the state will publish specific guidance within 24 hours and "you will have money on that EBT card."

On the expected scale of disruption, Landry warned that earlier in his remarks he had said nearly 800,000 Louisianans could lose access to food assistance if federal funding is paused. He later clarified the count of non-priority, able-bodied adults at issue: when a reporter suggested "over 200,000," Landry corrected that the figure he referenced for able-bodied adults was about "53,000 individuals or able-bodied adults."

Asked whether state SNAP staff would be furloughed, Landry said the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) and Bruce Greenstein have reviewed staffing needs and that the state — which typically pays approximately 50 percent of those employees' salaries — will reallocate state general fund money so essential staff can continue working to stand up the temporary program. "We have gone through, and Bruce and them have painstakingly gone through and made sure that the people that are continuing to be employed are those that we need to stand up the program," he said; he estimated roughly 1,100 staff are affected.

The governor estimated the cost of covering the able-bodied group for one month at about $147 million and said the state’s fiscal position — including a recent $577 million surplus and rainy-day reserves — makes a short-term backfill feasible. "We will be able to utilize some of the rainy day funds," he said, adding the state is acting "in the most fiscally responsible manner."

Landry said he has discussed the plan with House leadership and expects the federal government should reimburse states that backfill paused benefits: "I've spoken to both the speaker and the majority leader ... we believe that if we have to backfill, that they should reimburse us. They agreed."

He also noted broader litigation: a coalition of 25 states and D.C. sued the federal government over the suspension of food assistance, but said Louisiana is preparing its own short-term response.

The state will release detailed operational guidance shortly and hold a further announcement the following morning, Landry said. He urged able-bodied recipients to pursue available job openings and called on charities and food banks to help those who fall outside the prioritized groups.

The announcement is an administrative emergency action by the governor and does not reflect a federal appropriation; Landry said he hopes for federal reimbursement but provided no firm commitment that Congress or federal agencies will repay the state.