Snap Violation Attorney Houston Texas
AUSTIN (KXAN) — The US Department of Agriculture, which administers the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), is investigating lengthy delays for Texans needing assistance, according to Democratic Congressman Lloyd Doggett of Austin.
USDA officials came to Austin recently to meet with officials from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, which oversees SNAP, Doggett said. He will be briefed on the findings, and potential “corrective actions” next week, he told KXAN on Nov. 22.
“We’ll be gathering for Thanksgiving with families, often for a Thanksgiving feast,” said Doggett. “And, just keep in mind as you do that, that there’s 60,000 Texans who have not gotten their applications properly processed to get food on the table.”
Thousands of families in Texas are struggling to put any food on their tables. For more than a year, KXAN has investigated backlogs for Texans receiving federal food benefits through SNAP, which helps low-income households buy groceries.
However, a series of whistleblower letters, say Texans who are lacking the most are waiting longer than ever for food assistance. The anonymous letters, sent to Abbott and others, claim to come from concerned Texas HHSC employees. They allege SNAP recipients are waiting more than six months and could be waiting longer than 200 days next month.
“In September, we brought to your attention that the delay had increased to over 100 days and expected to exceed 200 days by the end of December,” a letter dated Nov. 21 said. “These things have happened just as we warned. The delay is currently over six months (more than 180 days) from when an individual applies to when their application is assigned to one of our staff to process. As we approach the holiday season, thousands of Texans are still waiting to receive the much-needed food assistance they applied for over six months ago. Governor Abbott and [HHSC Executive] Commissioner [Cecile] Young, how can you reasonably expect anyone in the situation we have placed our citizens in to have a happy Thanksgiving or a merry Christmas while they are contemplating how they will feed their families?”
Snap Violation Attorney Houston Texas
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