食品援助项目即将暂停 美国20多个州起诉联邦政府

Core Points - The U.S. federal government shutdown is impacting a crucial food assistance program, which is set to run out of funds and suspend operations on November 1 [1][2] - A lawsuit has been filed by 25 Democratic-led states and Washington D.C. against the federal government, seeking to utilize emergency federal funds to continue the program [1] - The lawsuit aims to overturn the federal government's directive to stop food assistance benefits and compel the Department of Agriculture to use all available funds to ensure the program's continuation [1] Group 1 - The "Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program" (SNAP) serves over 40 million Americans, accounting for about one-eighth of the total U.S. population, primarily low-income individuals and people with disabilities [2] - Both Democratic and Republican leaders acknowledge that halting food assistance would be the most severe consequence of the ongoing federal government shutdown [2] Group 2 - California's Attorney General announced the state's lawsuit against the federal government, specifically targeting the Department of Agriculture and its Secretary, asserting that the department is illegally suspending funding for the food voucher program [1] - The Secretary of Agriculture stated that there are insufficient emergency funds to support the SNAP program for November, estimating a cost of approximately $9.2 billion, which exceeds the available emergency funds [1]