'It had to end eventually:' County agencies brace for impact as federal food benefits decrease

ELYRIA — For thousands of Lorain County residents, extra cash benefits for food will end in March — just shy of three years after they started. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the federal government expanded its Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to the maximum amount for individuals — skyrocketing some recipients from 20-some dollars a month to more than $200. But come March 1, recipients' allocations will return to almost pre-pandemic levels, leaving local nonprofits to act as a safety net for those impacted. "It's going to be brutal," said Barb Tamas, Lorain County Job and Family Services executive director. "When JFS directors get together we're all looking at each other with a bit of shock, honestly, because we're here to help people. We're not here to hurt people … but we're governed by federal and state laws and regulations. We don't have discretion to do anything." Second Harvest Food Bank president and CEO Julie Chase-Morefield said agencies knew this was coming, but it will mark a huge shift in a benefit many have come to rely on as rent, gas and other prices have increased since 2019. In July, Second Harvest began preparing for an expected jump in need as it anxiously waited for guidance from the federal government on when the expansion would end — first expecting it in the fall, then winter, before the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 signed Dec. 29 finally set a date. "It had to end eventually," Chase-Morefield said. But that doesn't lessen the impact on vulnerable populations — including senior citizens and families with children. "We've seen this before during the 2009 recession (when) there was an increase in SNAP benefits as well," she said. "Nothing does more to alleviate food insecurity than SNAP, especially for families with kids." Second Harvest operates food banks and supplies pantries in four counties, including Lorain County. And since the pandemic began, it's seen a consistent 30 percent increase in need — even with the emergency allotments. Chase-Morefield expects another increase in mid-March as the extra benefits end. Tamas stressed the change isn't coming from the county, or even state Job and Family Services staff. But as the end of the extra funding draws near, directors across the state are "white-knuckling this." There's little county offices can do to help, other than bear the brunt of recipients' anticipated ire as the extra allotments end. "It's as scary for us to be doing this to the clientele as it is for the clientele to have it happen," she said. In 2022, more than 17,000 households received SNAP benefits, Tamas said, with the majority of those having children. Nationally, about 1 in 10 families receive the cash benefit, with nearly half of those households with children, according to 2021 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. In Lorain County, the median income for families receiving SNAP is $17,755 — $3,000 less than the state average. Tamas said her agency ended 2022 with more than 35,000 recipients on its rolls, issuing approximately $9.5 million in SNAP benefits for the month of December alone. "We all knew that this was something that couldn't be sustained, these dollars," she said. "So this is where we are." Safety net While preparing her staff for angry phone calls from upset recipients, Tamas is looking to nonprofit partners like Second Harvest who may have the leeway to help individuals where JFS cannot. Chase-Morefield is already anticipating helping pick up the slack, and has been trying to get more senior citizens on its food box program in preparation for the decreased EBT allocation. Lorain County Community Action Agency CEO Jackie Boehnlein said her agency is looking to connect its clients to local food pantries, as well as encouraging them to look at their household budget. Families eligible for SNAP benefits are also eligible for help with their utility bills — which can free up funds once the emergency allotments run dry. The state's Home Energy Assistance Program, or HEAP, can help eligible Ohioans with their home energy bills via a one-time payment, while its Percentage of Income Payment Plan program, or PIPP, can help reduce energy bills to a percentage of a families' monthly income to avoid a crisis. She said most people are aware of the other programs available, like HEAP and PIPP, but 1 in 3 individuals in poverty this year weren't necessarily in poverty in previous years, she said. "If you have a major negative life event like loss of a spouse or loss of a job, something like that, you may or may not know of all the programs and services that are available to you," Boehnlein said. And it's not just SNAP benefits that will impact low-income families, she said, as the COVID-19 freeze on Medicaid un-enrollment is also ending. During the pandemic, families receiving Medicaid were able to stay continuously enrolled without having to recertify their eligibility. "As all of those emergency benefits that were put in place start to unwind, we're going to have to help our families navigate where to get services and where to go for help," she said. Families will have to recertify for Medicaid, and it is expected a large number will no longer qualify — leaving them potentially uninsured. As the programs wind down, she, alongside Tamas, expect the level of benefits given to those most vulnerable may come under scrutiny at the federal level. "I do believe that any time a program ends it is cause for us to evaluate the benefit levels of a program. … I believe that as a nation we're going to look at that and say, 'OK what is that program intended to do and are we giving the appropriate level of benefits, given the deep level of poverty of the households we're uplifting?'" Boehnlein said. Tamas said there has already been some movement with SNAP to raise the monthly issuances in 2023. In 2019, a single person's maximum allotment was $194 a month, based in part on their income. That amount has been steadily increased, to $281 in 2023. "Some of those figures that were so low, there is some movement there is some recognition," Tamas said. "Not enough to make up for the loss of this emergency allotment, unfortunately." Those in need of food assistance can find their closest food pantry or hot meal program via freshtrak.com. Second Harvest also operates a mobile drive-thru pantry at different locations each week. Eligible senior citizens can also sign up for Second Harvest's Senior Food Box program, which delivers food to low-income seniors each month. For more information, including eligibility guidelines, contact Second Harvest at (440) 960-2265. To see if your household qualifies for HEAP, or other budgeting programs, contact LCCAA at (440) 245-2009. Its website, lccaa.net, also has an eligibility calculator and automated assistant. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.