Wisconsin Declares Emergency Over FoodShare Lapse: Nearly 700,000 Affected as State Moves Against Price Gouging
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers signed Executive Order #278 on October 31 in Madison, declaring a state of emergency and a period of abnormal economic disruption as the federal government shutdown lapses funding for FoodShare, the state's name for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Nearly 700,000 Wisconsinites, including nearly 270,000 kids, rely on FoodShare to afford basic food and groceries, and November benefits have been in limbo since federal funding ran out on November 1.
The order directs the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) to begin enforcing against price gouging and directs all executive branch agencies to take any and all measures to respond, including reviewing and suspending administrative rules that would hinder or delay the response. Consumers can report price gouging to the Consumer Protection Hotline at (800) 422-7128, and anyone who needs food or infant formula can dial 211 for referrals to local services.
"Wisconsinites and Americans across the country are now scrambling, trying to figure out how to feed their families," Evers said. "My executive order will ensure our state agencies can do whatever they can within our power to help support kids, families, farmers, seniors, veterans, and so many others across our state, including cracking down on price gouging on everyday things folks need."
Unlike some states, Wisconsin's governor cannot appropriate funding by executive order to continue FoodShare benefits; that would require a bill passed by both houses of the state legislature. Wisconsin has joined a multi-state lawsuit seeking to require the federal government to use available contingency funds, and on October 31 two federal courts opined that the administration likely must use those funds to continue at least partial SNAP benefits. The state health department says November WIC benefits remain available and Medicaid and BadgerCare Plus coverage continues.
Related: Two federal judges rule USDA must use contingency funds to pay November SNAP benefits
Source: Office of the Governor of Wisconsin.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 威斯康星州州长 Tony Evers。州长官方照片，2022年，CC BY 2.0，经Wikimedia Commons。 / Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers. Official photo, 2022, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
