27 October 2025
By Julie O’Donoghue
Contributing Writer
(lailluminator.com) — Louisiana political leaders are preparing to use around $150 million monthly in state funding to help continue food assistance benefits while the federal government shutdown in Washington D.C., continues, Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said on Friday, October 24.
“I mean, it’s a choice between using money that we have or people going hungry,” Henry said in an interview. “That’s why we have the fund balances that we have.”
Gov. Jeff Landry issued an executive order last Friday helping the state to cover the costs of food assistance for most, but not all, of the people enrolled in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, for a short period of time. Legislators also plan to approve an “urgent request” that will allow state money to be released for the program next week.
Landry’s order is more restrictive than what Henry said lawmakers are willing to support. It only extends benefits to children, elderly and disabled people – but not other adults in the program – for a short period of time, from Nov. 1-4.
The legislators want to preserve SNAP benefits for everyone who is already enrolled in the program for multiple months if necessary, according to the Senate president.
In Louisiana, 793,000 people receive SNAP benefits that help them purchase food every month. Landry’s executive order would cover only 565,000 of those people.
Henry said, prior to this paper going to press on Friday, that it was not clear yet whether the state will be able to find enough money in the short term to avoid a break in benefits for everyone who receives SNAP assistance, but that is the goal of the legislative leaders.
A priority is to ensure seniors and people with disabilities who are enrolled in the program – and receive their benefits on the first of the month before others – see no delay, he said.
Louisiana will be paying for the food assistance to continue, even if the federal government doesn’t reimburse the state for its missed months of service. Henry said it could require the state to dip into its savings accounts, and he added Republicans and Democrats have agreed they are willing to do so.
“We are sending a clear message that the people of Louisiana are the priority,” said Sen. Gerald Boudreaux, D-Lafayette, head of the Senate Democratic Caucus, agreeing with Henry.
The House which planned to vote on the urgent request on Friday, had not done so prior to this paper’s press run. The Senate will take it up on Wednesday, Henry said.
This article originally published in the October 27, 2025 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.