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(Photo/Alex Kielar) Stephens County Chief Appraiser Will Thompson, left, touched on the funding that remains following the two separate occasions in which SNAP-eligible individuals and families received gift cards at the county's emergency coalition meeting Monday, Nov. 10.
On the heels of the Senate taking the first step towards reaching a bipartisan agreement to reopen the federal government, the Stephens County emergency coalition discussed successes from its food assistance plan and where to go in the future if and when the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) is again suspended as part of another possible shutdown.
Food benefits still remain in limbo despite the agreement made Sunday, Nov. 9 and only ensures the government is fully reopened until Friday, Jan. 30, 2026.
The agreement to reopen the government after the longest-ever shutdown would, however, keep programs such as SNAP and veteran services funded through next year. Smaller communities such as Stephens County would also have the highest risk of being harmed as funding dries out in the midst of another potential shutdown.
The deal will now have to pass the House of Representatives, with lawmakers in the House being put on 36-hour return notice, so it may take several days before they take the vote.
Stephens County held its second emergency planning session regarding the SNAP program Monday, Nov. 1, in which ResourceCare of Breckenridge also had a seat at the table in addition to some of the entities that had attended the first meeting Monday, Oct. 27.
The meeting was led by Stephens County Emergency Management Coordinator David Leonard, who reported that $34,060 was raised by Stephens County residents over the couple weeks that the plan was in place.
Stephens County Chief Appraiser Will Thompson said that there is a remaining cash balance of $8,160 and 129 gift cards, which the coalition decided to hold in reserve in case of another similar situation in February.
Thompson said that 35% of the number of eligible SNAP cases in the county received gift cards over the two separate donation periods–Saturday, Nov. 1 through Sunday, Nov. 2 and Saturday, Nov. 8 through the Stephens County Mission for Hope.
“I thought this was a very successful program,” Leonard said, which others at the table agreed. “I applaud everyone’s efforts.”
Sheriff Kevin Roach said that he had a sheriff deputy on scene for both occasions, who reported no issues occurring, as people showed the identification that was required to receive the gift cards.
The group talked about how there were so many unknown variables with the situation, which meant that they didn’t know how much was going to be needed or how quickly to hand out the cards.
Thompson noted that they have enough remaining to have been able to last another week and a half to two weeks of handing out donations. He and others at the table were also clear that if anyone is currently in need, they should not hesitate to reach out to Mission for Hope by calling 254-249-4200 and they can use some of the remaining funds.
The group decided to reconvene in the second week of January in order to prepare for a potential SNAP suspension in February. The meeting will take place Monday, Jan. 12 at 3 p.m. and if there is another shutdown, they will develop a brochure informing SNAP beneficiaries of additional services that they can look to receive.
Other discussions that were brought up were other potential groups to bring to the table, like local churches. They also discussed other avenues of getting the word out about the program besides social media, such as text notifications and posting info sheets with QR codes at grocery stores that would take people to a landing page with all the necessary resources.
The group will continue to monitor the political situation and will be prepared if and when a similar incident occurs.
