JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The City of Jacksonville released data on Monday showing the economic impact on local businesses and households caused by SNAP benefit delays.
RELATED: White House walks back Trump’s threat to SNAP
The city said about 160,000 people in Duval County rely on SNAP each month, which includes about 57,000 households.
In 23 neighborhoods with around 11,000 homes, over 50% of the households are on SNAP.
The average SNAP benefit is $187 per person per month.
The United States Department of Agriculture said that each $1 of SNAP generates about $1.50-$1.79 in economic activity.
Officials said the delays will cause a direct loss of about $30 million not spent at retailers and a local GDP of about $45 million-$54 million. The data projects there to be about 270-535 job losses per month.
Most SNAP dollars are spent at grocery stores and then flow through the logistics and food manufacturing sectors. The reduced benefits are linked to higher food insecurity and health costs.
The data says that Jacksonville has the second-most households in Florida receiving SNAP with children in them.
The city said 31% of the homes in the 32202 zip code are receiving SNAP and all of those homes have children in them.
Take a look at the full data presentation below.
Rep. Angie Nixon called on Jacksonville to enact a temporary moratorium on residential utility shutoffs during the government shutdown.
“A temporary moratorium is a compassionate, common-sense step that protects public health and reflects our city’s shared values of fairness and community support. I encourage JEA to join me in taking swift, proactive action to protect Jacksonville residents during this difficult time,” said partially in a statement.
JEA released a response to Nixon’s request:
But on Tuesday, Trump issued a fresh threat, warning he would halt SNAP food aid unless Democrats agree to reopen the government.
Trump said on social media that SNAP benefits “will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!”
The White House followed up and said it will partially fund critical food aid during the government shutdown.
Feeding Northeast Florida said on its website that the lack of SNAP benefits has increased the demand for food more than during the height of COVID.