November 1, 2025
Dear Friends,
Today marks one month since Republicans shut down the federal government. For weeks, Democrats have been ready and willing to reach a bipartisan agreement to end the shutdown and lower health care costs for American families. But instead of working with us to address these urgent challenges, House Republicans have been on a paid vacation since mid-September. Now, as millions of Americans face soaring insurance premiums and the loss of vital lifelines like SNAP, it is more important than ever for Republicans to come back to work, reopen the government, and stop holding American families hostage to score political points.
Each month, millions of hardworking Americans rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to help feed themselves and their families. SNAP provides critical food assistance for 42 million Americans, including 16 million children, 8 million seniors, 1.2 million veterans, and nearly 3 million New Yorkers. In our 20th congressional district alone, nearly 80,000 people — including more than 26,000 children — depend on SNAP to purchase the food they need to survive. Without these essential benefits, thousands of our neighbors and family members will face acute, immediate food shortages — and states and local food pantries will struggle to fill the gap. That’s why yesterday, I held an event in Troy with local food pantry leaders, anti-hunger advocates, and SNAP beneficiaries to highlight the urgent need for federal action to prevent hunger in the Capital Region and nationwide.
Republicans are well aware of the essential role SNAP plays in keeping our communities strong and healthy. But now, in a brazen display of contempt for American families, Donald Trump and his GOP allies are using the shutdown as an excuse to illegally withhold November SNAP benefits from tens of millions of Americans.
Let’s be clear about what’s happening here: the Trump administration has both the legal authority and the funding necessary to fully fund this vital program for November. SNAP has a substantial contingency fund intended for exactly this purpose, and both the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Trump’s own Department of Agriculture have stated that the fund should be used to sustain the program during a shutdown. But instead of using every tool to ensure that families can put food on the table this month, the Trump administration has chosen to use hunger as a political weapon. This is a new low for Republican cruelty, and my Democratic colleagues and I are demanding that the administration immediately release these funds to the families who need them most.
Today also marks the start of the health insurance enrollment period for millions of Americans, and families across the country are seeing the effects of Republicans’ failure to address the rising cost of health care. Thanks to the GOP’s refusal to extend critical Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, millions of people are already facing skyrocketing insurance premiums that will decimate their pocketbooks. Here in our Capital Region, for example, a 60-year-old couple earning $80,000 per year will see their health care costs increase by more than $9,000 per year, while a family of four earning $64,000 a year will face an annual premium hike of more than $2,500 — a 426% increase. These rising costs — especially when combined with the elimination of food assistance — will place millions of families in an impossible position. But still, Republicans refuse to do a thing about it.
The American people want to see real action to lower costs and protect the vital programs and services they depend on. That’s why my Democratic colleagues and I remain united in our efforts to reopen the government, protect SNAP, and ensure that every American has access to quality, affordable health care. Now, as millions of working families feel the extreme pain of this GOP shutdown, it is past time for Republicans to come back from their vacation, join us at the negotiating table, and deliver a bipartisan agreement that truly addresses the needs of the American people.
As always, thank you for reading.
Your friend,
DID YOU KNOW?
My office and I are working to make sure you remain informed with the latest updates, announcements, and recommendations from governments and agencies. With that in mind, here is some information that may be of interest to you:
- As the Republican shutdown continues into its second month and thousands of Capital Region residents face the loss of their SNAP benefits, food pantries across our region are facing an acute need for more supplies.
- That’s why Albany County is hosting a food drive to help our neighbors during the shutdown, with collection bins located in all Albany County buildings.
- You can drop off desperately needed items like canned proteins, soups, and vegetables, dried beans, fruit, and herbs, ground coffee, peanut butter, diapers, baby formula, menstrual products, soap, and more at any of the following locations:
- If you are in need of food assistance or if you are interested in volunteering at a local food pantry or soup kitchen, click HERE to find a pantry near you.
