Tennessee gives food banks $5M, as SNAP recipients wait for benefits

Patience. That’s what mother and chef Andrea Gant says she’s relied on most while anxiously awaiting benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

“Other than that, I’ve been using resources — food banks, you know — to take care of my household and my kids,” she says.

She’s not alone. Nearly one in 10 Tennesseans are having to find a way to get food without their SNAP benefits. Food banks are seeing the strain.

Like several other states, Tennessee pulled some money from its savings to give food banks, in an effort to reduce the strain they’re seeing as the shutdown drags on. Gov. Bill Lee authorized a withdrawal of $5 million.

That averages out to about $7 per SNAP recipient. Tennessee’s total monthly benefits run the federal government $145 million.

And although there were pushes to tap the rainy day fund — that’s not what happened. This $5 million comes from a fund tied to TennCare. The state has a special deal with the federal government: if it keeps TennCare costs down, it can keep and redistribute some of the savings. So far, Tennessee has gotten about $1 billion in those payments. They’ve spent it on things like rural health workforce initiatives and Hurricane Helene relief.

Metro reporter Cynthia Abrams contributed to this report.