The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is cutting about $1 billion in federal programs that fund schools and food banks.
As part of the cut, more than $600 million will be cut from the ‘Local Food for Schools program,’ which is active in several states including here in Montana. The other program seeing cuts is the ‘Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative’ program which will take a $400 million hit.
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These federal funding cuts come from the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) plan to cut down on federal spending.
The Great Falls Community Food Bank’s executive director, Shaun Tatarka, said they were never a part of those specific programs, so it will not be affecting them.
According to Tatarka, they typically pride themselves on not relying on federal funding, with the exception of the pandemic in 2020 where they did take advantage of federal grants.
“We will not be affected by that cut. I do feel for the agencies that were cut, and I know that [those] programs have been around for about five years. And, yeah, it's tough for those agencies, but, you know, fortunately, we were not a part of that,” explained Tatarka.
Tatarka said if funding continues to be cut in other areas, it could severely impact those who are affected and cause an even bigger need among the hunger crises.
“On the [current federal funding] side of it, we’re probably going to be fine; if there's any cuts to individual, you know, individuals’ benefits like SNAP, then the need is going to go up and therefore that's going to put a strain on us. And that is a concern right now, but again, I haven't heard anything, so you know, fingers crossed,” said Tatarka.
