U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer speaks during a news conference in Buffalo eariler this year about Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funding reductions.

There is a host of uncertainty surrounding the Supplementary Nutrition Assistance Program and the resources that they have access to as a result of the Big Beautiful Bill.

This comes at a time of ever increasing need for assistance in Chautauqua County, making it even more necessary.

The Reconciliation Act caused record-breaking cuts towards food assistance, with $200 billion in cuts towards SNAP and the United States Department of Agriculture cancelling $500 million worth of food purchases for The Emergency Food Assistance Program. This directly affects funding towards many food assistance organizations such as FeedMore WNY, an organization that provides food assistance and helps in determining SNAP eligibility.

“What we do know is that there is already a lot of confusion and uncertainty around the future of SNAP. Concerned community members are contacting us worried about the status of their benefits, while others who may be eligible are too fearful or discouraged to apply,” said Catherine Shick, Public Relations Director at FeedMore WNY on the community’s uncertainty at this time.

Shick also noted that these changes come at a time when the need for food assistance in WNY is increasing. FeedMore WNY provided assistance to nearly 166,000 people throughout the four counties they serve this last year, an increase of 16 percent from the previous year and a 46 percent increase since 2021 according to Shick.

These deep cuts will certainly cause an incredible restraint of aid for these organizations. Further information and change implementation was supposed to be completed on Sept. 1, but since there has been no word from the federal government on changes the organizations have no immediate changes in effect at this time.

“The full impact of pending changes to SNAP because of the Reconciliation Act has yet to be understood. There have been no immediate changes to SNAP Policy. In fact, agencies like FeedMore WNY that help people apply for SNAP have been advised not to implement any changes until further guidance is issued from the federal government.”

With changes likely to come eventually these organizations remain dedicated towards helping the community it seems, with them ready to aid people in navigating any changes that do come about.

“Our main message for the community is that FeedMore WNY is here to help neighbors navigate any changes to SNAP if or when they occur. We have dedicated team members out in the community every day helping to answer questions on eligibility, assisting with applications, enrolling new households on SNAP, and connecting people to additional valuable resources” stated Shick on the future of food assistance within the county.

For more information on SNAP changes, or for food assistance, call 716-822-2002 or visit www.feedmorewny.org.