WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) cosponsored the Keep SNAP Funded Act, which would appropriate full, necessary funding to provide uninterrupted Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to 3.5 million Texans during the current lapse in appropriations for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, retroactive to the start of the shutdown:

“Senate Democrats have voted against funding SNAP and reopening the government more than a dozen times already, forcing vulnerable Texans to go hungry as the holidays are fast approaching,” said Sen. Cornyn. “Democrats’ callous apathy towards Texans is sickening, and this legislation would ensure our most vulnerable mothers, children, and families across the Lone Star State have the assistance they desperately need during this senseless shutdown.” 

The legislation cosponsored by Sen. Cornyn is being led in the Senate by U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO). 

Background:

Senate Democrats’ refusal to vote for a clean continuing resolution (CR) that would re-open the federal government has now put 42 million Americans who rely on SNAP benefits in jeopardy. Since the federal government shutdown began on October 1, 2025, SNAP has been operating with limited federal funding. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission announced that benefits will not be issued starting November 1, 2025, during the lapse in appropriations, impacting the 3.5 million Texans who rely on this critical assistance.

Sen. Cornyn sounded the alarm on SNAP funds running out earlier this month due to Democrats’ obstruction, and he has repeatedly condemned Senate Democrats for their political gamesmanship in holding government funding hostage since the shutdown began.