Food Stamp Crisis: City of Newburgh Approves $100,000 SNAP Dollars; Middletown Approves $10,000 SNAP Dollars
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Food Stamps, otherwise known as SNAP (Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program) are scheduled to end on Saturday, November 1st, 2025, a presidential administration-made crisis due to the federal government shutdown resulting from the inability to agree on cuts to Medicaid and access to health care. The federal government has placed blame on a governmental party, where such politicizing is allegedly illegal according to the Hatch Act. Further psychologically harming individuals reliant on SNAP, the presidential administration has published baiting language on the SNAP application page that says: “the well has run dry.”
According to reporting from CBS, the SNAP program has $5.5 billion in a contingency fund, according to Bobby Kogan, Senior Director of Federal Budget Policy at the Center for American Progress, that the 47th presidential administration is refusing to release.
Local food justice organizations have been preparing for this moment, and local municipalities are stepping up. First to announce direct dollars going to SNAP recipients was Middletown, who has approved a reallocation of $10,000 federal funding already secured for other purposes to provide short-term emergency relief, Blaise Gomez reported. “Mayor Joseph DeStefano called it a necessary, transparent use of existing funds ‘to act quickly, responsibly, and compassionately,’ while the city pursues additional public and private support to expand the effort,” she reported. This will reach approximately 200 Middletown families, with details on distribution, eligibility and guidelines to be posted soon.
Next, the City of Newburgh authorized $100,000 from their already secured federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to people enrolled in SNAP, Blaise reported. In a proposal by Orange County Legislator Genesis Ramos, Midhudson News reported, the City of Newburgh will give $150 grocery gift cards to approximately 700 households that are currently enrolled in SNAP. The newspaper reports that “priority will go to families and seniors at highest risk of food insecurity, with eligibility and distribution details to be released in the coming days.”
City of Newburgh Mayor Torrance Harvey said of the root of the blockage of SNAP: “This shutdown is a direct result of full-grown adults in Washington, D.C. failing to fulfill the one job that they were sent to do, to serve the people. Every elected official is bound by duty to put the needs of the citizens first, and yet here we are facing the fallout of their incompetence and their willingness to stand idly by while countless family members suffer.”
For those not yet familiar with Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), that is money that can be used for income-level qualifying areas. In Beacon, for example, grant monies have gone to infrastructure upgrades like sidewalk replacements in neighborhoods that meet the income level requirements, like the multi-year sidewalk replacement along South Avenue at South Davies Terrace and Loopers Court.
“Newburgh officials say they are also exploring partnerships and donations to grow their program. Local businesses, community groups, and donors interested in contributing to Newburgh’s emergency fund can contact the City Manager’s Office at (845) 569-7301,” Midhudson News reports.
Orange County Legislator Genesis Ramos called Washington’s actions “cruel and disgusting.” She cited that 19,000 households in Orange County are using SNAP food stamps currently. She said in the City and Town of Newburgh, 7,200 people rely on SNAP benefits.
