TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
When the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled, on Mar. 31, 2021, in Fabick v. Evers, that Gov. Tony Evers did not have the authority to issue repeated Executive Emergency Orders related to the COVID pandemic, households relying on emergency food assistance benefits feared they would lose benefits. As a result of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act of 2020, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) was authorized to provide additional emergency food assistance benefits to states under a couple of conditions. First, the state had to request it, and secondly, the state had to be under an emergency order or disaster declaration related to COVID-19.
Since the Supreme Court’s decision effectively voided Wisconsin’s state of emergency when it said the Gov. did not have the authority to issue continued or future emergency orders and struck down his Executive Order #105, that meant Wisconsin no longer qualified to received the extra federal food funds.
But, according to a press release issued Apr. 13, Gov. Evers announced his administration reached a deal with the USDA and Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), so the state will continue to get the funding. The USDA/FNS has agreed to accept a declaration by Department of Health Services Secretary-designee Karen Timberlake in place of an emergency order from the Governor, the release said.
This means Wisconsin will continue to receive more than $70 million in federal food assistance benefits, for the 400,000+ Wisconsin households who receive FoodShare, which will include the expanded funding the UDSA recently announced for this emergency food program, according to the release.
FoodShare is Wisconsin’s supplemental nutrition assistance program (called SNAP is some other states) to provide nutrition support for working families, low-income seniors, and other households living on fixed or low incomes. According to the statistics provided, 34.5 percent of participating households include children, and nearly 43 percent of participating households include seniors or people with disabilities. The number of people enrolled in FoodShare increased by 140,000 people in the past year, bringing the total number of people to more than 770,000.
The press release was quick to point out that the additional federal funding impacts retailers, farmers, and businesses across the state. When FoodShare recipients spend their benefits at grocery stores and other retailers, farms and companies that supply, transport, and market the food purchased also benefit.