Council urges state to provide emergency funding for DTA to stem SNAP processing delays

The Springfield City Council on Monday unanimously approved a resolution (Item 39) urging the Governor and the Massachusetts Legislature to provide emergency supplemental funding to the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) to address staffing shortfalls and restore timely SNAP processing.

Elizabeth (Liz) Ogilvy, executive director of the Springfield Food Policy Council, told the council Springfield has one of the state's highest SNAP caseloads and faces significant administrative backlogs at DTA that are causing eligible households to lose benefits. "DTA is severely understaffed," Ogilvy said. "Less than one out of every four calls actually gets answered," she said, urging the council to press state leaders for emergency hiring to prevent further loss of benefits.

Council sponsors described the resolution as urgent. Councilor Cliff Bruce said staffing shortages were shifting costs to local food providers and municipalities and urged colleagues to support the measure. The resolution requests that copies be transmitted to the governor, lieutenant governor and state legislative leaders and directs the city to press for immediate supplemental funding to reduce processing backlogs and protect federal benefits.

The council added multiple co-sponsors and adopted the resolution by roll call. The action is a formal request to state leaders; it does not direct local expenditure but seeks state action to preserve SNAP access for Springfield families, seniors and children.

Next steps: The resolution will be transmitted to the Governor's Office and the state delegation as listed in the adopted text.