Governor: Funds lacking, but will seek them to pay the PAN if federal shutdown continues

Gov. Jenniffer González Colón

By THE STAR STAFF

Gov. Jenniffer González Colón said Tuesday that if the federal government shutdown is extended into November, her administration will have to find alternatives to pay the Nutrition Assistance Program (PAN by its acronym in Spanish) funds.

So far, funds are available to cover the first week of November.

“We are looking at other alternatives we could use to fund, if necessary, an additional week. I don’t want to say right now that we have the money, because we don’t, and I don’t want to rush into making proposals that the fiscal board might not approve,” the governor said at a press conference, referring to the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico. “We are still in hurricane season, so I’m not considering the Emergency Fund at this time, because you’re seeing the hurricanes that just hit Jamaica and the sister islands. We’re not out of the woods yet with hurricane season until November 20, so I want to be very cautious about that, with sudden rains that could cause major landslides on roads. But we already have […] this week and next, so technically we have a two-week buffer to continue working on the alternative. God willing, the president [Donald Trump] has said that this will be his priority, and I hope the members of Congress will do their part.”

As of Tuesday, the shutdown has become the second-longest in U.S. history, with more than 900,000 federal employees furloughed and another 2 million working without pay (see related story on page 5). Essential services such as Medicare and air traffic control continue, but many programs -- including food assistance -- are facing funding lapses (see related story on page 7).

“For me, the PAN funds are a priority,” González Colón continued. [...] “We are going to do what we have to do to put food on the table for our people through the funds allocated for the PAN. …”

Also on Tuesday, Resident Commissioner Pablo José Hernández asked U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins to clarify whether the funds used by the island government to finance the PAN expenses will be reimbursed once the federal government shutdown ends.

“The [Trump] Administration must clarify whether or not the Government of Puerto Rico will receive reimbursement for the state funds reallocated to the PAN during this government shutdown,” the resident commissioned said in a written statement. “Puerto Rican families should not be left behind simply because the Administration refuses to use the legal tools and resources at its disposal. Food security is not a partisan issue -- it is a moral issue.”

Nelson Albino, the state director of USDA Rural Development in Puerto Rico, wrote on his X page that “the move by some state governments to temporarily cover the SNAP food stamp program with their funds while the federal government reopens is a dangerous measure for state finances because, as our USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said in her memo, the federal government will NOT reimburse states for the money they spend on this, since the federal government is not obligated to do so.”

“Several states with governors from both parties have already told their citizens that as of November 1st, there will be no food stamps and they will not spend their funds because they know that whatever their states spend, they will not be reimbursed,” he added in the post. “State governments must be careful and not be tempted by populism.”

Hernández Rivera, Agriculture Committee Minority Leader Angie Craig, and House Appropriations Minority Leader Rosa L. DeLauro sent a letter to Rollins expressing their “deep concern about the impact this situation will have on families who rely on the PAN to feed themselves and support their households.”

They emphasized that, like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the PAN lacks automatic funding during interruptions in federal allocations; however, it operates differently, as a limited block grant, subject to different rules and regulations.

“Tens of thousands of households in Puerto Rico depend on the PAN to purchase food,” Hernández Rivera said in a written statement. “Any delay or reduction in benefits would have immediate and serious consequences for our seniors, our children, and our low-income workers.”

Earlier on Tuesday, Speaker of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives Carlos “Johnny” Méndez Nuñez announced that he is evaluating the use of the island’s Emergency Reserve Fund to ensure continued benefits under PAN for November.

Speaking on a radio program, Méndez said he plans to request authorization from the oversight board to transfer funds from the reserve, which he said could cover payments to the more than 1.2 million families who rely on nutrition assistance.