Timing of State Supreme Court's Decision Cost Struggling Families Tens of Millions in Food Aid

[riversedge]

I got from an email







UpNorthNews [e-mail] via gmail.mcsv.net

Apr 8, 2021, 2:25 PM (7 days ago)

to me


.

Adding Insult to Injury, Timing of State Supreme Court's Decision Cost Struggling Families Tens of Millions in Food Aid

The recent state Supreme Court ruling that struck down a statewide pandemic emergency declaration, coupled with the Republican-led Legislature's refusal to pass a clean, bipartisan COVID-19 relief bill, means struggling Wisconsin families in more than a quarter-million households will lose out on $57.5 million in supplemental food aid.

Due to the pandemic recession, Congress last year provided a substantial increase in nutrition benefits for qualifying families so long as each state had emergency orders in place, demonstrating action to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

The Legislature failed to meet from mid-April of last year until early January, its GOP leaders spending much of that time in courts trying to kill Gov. Tony Evers' efforts to implement statewide safeguards, including face mask requirements.

On Wednesday, a Department of Health Services (DHS) spokesperson confirmed suspicions that the state Supreme Court order will result in that monthly loss of tens of millions of dollars. Further, because the court order came on March 31, supplemental food aid for May has been lost to 255,000 households. Had the court ruled one day later, food aid would not have been cut until June.

Sherrie Tussler, executive director of the Hunger Task Force, said there were 771,186 individuals across the state enrolled in FoodShare in February.

Republicans attempted to preserve a much more limited emergency declaration by including it in a bill that also wrestled away Evers’ control of future federal relief dollars and put strict limits in place on local health officials, school districts, and state vaccination plans. Evers vetoed the measure.

Republicans also are costing the state millions of dollars in extra unemployment benefits by refusing to waive a waiting period for the newly jobless to receive help.

—The Associated Press contributed to this report by Pat Kreitlow

[AllyCat]

1. Evers did work a deal with the feds to restore food aid

And actually increase what we were getting to $70M. That is yet another reason to vote for Democrats. They get $hit done.

[riversedge]

2. I just saw that post. But thanks.