SNAP, which stands for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, is a federally funded program, which began in the 1960s called food stamps and rebranded in 2008. It has been suspended due to the government shutdown.

On Wednesday, the Chautauqua County Legislature held a special meeting to discuss SNAP as well as HEAP – the federal Heating Energy Assistance Program – which has been delayed to later this month.

County Executive PJ Wendel said the New York State Associations of Counties met with members of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s staff, as well as federal officials to discuss options.

“The state cannot fund the benefits of SNAP. The counties cannot fund the lost benefits of SNAP. The amount of money is far too expensive for the county or even the state to cover these missing costs right now,” he said. “From the state: Direct your residents to the resources that are available currently and we will get through this situation.”

Constance Griffith, a volunteer with Fred Basket, a certified food pantry in Fredonia, wants to see the county use some of its unallocated funds to go to local food pantries, as well as establish a process to ensure the money is used properly.

Wendel said some counties across the state have done a few different things. “Albany County has pledged to work with United Way in a matching funds system. In Buffalo, Erie County pledged a million dollars for FeedMore Western New York. The Ulster County Executive has instructed her community foundation to fund the food pantries,” he said.

In Chautauqua County, Wendel said he’s taking the same approach they did when COVID-19 first struck. “We’re ready, we’re poised, we’re analyzing and assessing the situation as is needed, and it changes day to day,” he said.

Carmelo Hernandez, Commissioner of Mental Hygiene Services, said other benefits are still coming out. The state will be directly contacting beneficiaries as to how they will receive those benefits and any changes.

He said anyone that has an emergency should contact Chautauqua County Social Services. The county has a limited amount of resources that the county can move to meet emergency needs.

Still, Hernandez said the county needs to be cautious with its spending. “My biggest concern now is we put a big pot of money out there and this goes way longer,” he said.

Hernandez noted on Monday they only had one person in Dunkirk and three people in Jamestown reach out to them to say they were in an emergency situation when their SNAP benefits ran out.

With regards to HEAP, Hernandez said like SNAP, that program is 100% funded by the federal government. Applications for the benefits have been delayed until Nov. 24.

Dana Corwin, the director of the county Office for the Aging Services, said they have received a few calls from senior citizens. “We’re not seeing calls that they’re directly out of food but we’ve been planning with other agencies to address that issue if it becomes a reality,” she said.

Corwin said out of about 39,000 adults over 60 years of age in Chautauqua County, 4,367 receive SNAP.

John Anderson, Deputy Commissioner of Social Services, said there are 22,325 people in the county that receive SNAP benefits, adding that the number changes weekly.

Officials said there’s around 30 food pantries in the county.

During the public portion of the meeting, Constance Griffith, a volunteer co-manager of Fred Basket, a certified food pantry in Fredonia, said she would like to see the county use some of its unallocated funds to go to food pantries on a weekly basis until the federal SNAP benefits are restored.

She also proposed the county enter into a contract with FeedMore WNY like Erie County. “Under this contract, the Department of Social Services provides a voucher to a SNAP client when there is a delay in receiving benefits, or if a client has a lost or stolen card. The client presents the voucher to one of the food pantry partners, which then sends it to FeedMore. Erie County pays a set fee per client to FeedMore, and then the payment is credited as a grant to the pantry to replenish what was given out,” she said.

Griffith said she believes a program like this would provide fiscal accountability and program flexibility for food subsidy programs in the county. “The advantage of having this system in place is not only to solve the on-going hiccups in the day-to-day operation, but in times like this we can assure that the county monies are being spent responsibly and there is accountability for the funds,” she said.

The county legislature directed its Law Department and Social Services to explore such an option.

They asked for an update to be provided next week at the committee meetings so that county lawmakers could have the opportunity to vote on such a proposal at its next meeting which is set for Nov. 19.

Legislator Fred Johnson noted that one out of five residents in Chautauqua County receive SNAP. That’s more than either Cattaraugus and Allegany counties. “This is the kind of information that this body and the public tends not to get about the real condition of the economy, the poverty of the people in this county. That is really depressing,” he said.