A food emergency simmers in Florida | Steve Bousquet

A lot of people in South Florida are worried about where their next meal will come from, and it’s a lot more people than you think.

By one recent estimate, 252,859 people in Broward alone are eligible for SNAP, or the  Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — what used to be called food stamps.

That’s nearly 13% of the county population — more than one of every eight people in Broward. Many are young children. (The numbers are much higher in Miami-Dade and lower in Palm Beach County.)

These government-generated statistics are numerical snapshots that constantly change. Many more people make barely too much money to qualify for SNAP benefits, and they are struggling mightily, too.

By scrolling through census data and state vital statistics and choosing an earlier time, it’s easy to see that the number of eligible SNAP recipients in Broward is growing. (Yes, per capita income in the region is increasing, but so is the cost of living, at a faster rate.)

A “heat map” provided by Broward County Commissioner Nan Rich’s staff illustrates what many already know.

The need for fresh, wholesome food is generally highest across central Broward on either side of Interstate 95, in a corridor that is generally bordered by Dixie Highway on the east and Florida’s Turnpike on the west.

Large pockets of red are visible in Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Lauderhill and Lauderdale Lakes. The red all but disappears in Plantation, Weston and Pembroke Pines.

The Broward census tract with the single highest percentage of eligible food stamp recipients (31.4%, according to the data), straddles I-95 in Deerfield Beach, south of the county line.

Desperately needed SNAP benefits were set to lapse Saturday, putting millions of Americans at great risk, because of the federal government shutdown.

But federal judges in Massachusetts and Rhode Island stepped in and ordered the Trump administration to use federal contingency funds to keep benefits flowing. Even then, the AP reported Saturday, it will take a week, maybe longer, to reload SNAP cards for consumers.

U.S. District Judge John McConnell Jr. intervened at a crucial time. Churches, nonprofits and three Rhode Island cities sued the Trump administration to maintain SNAP funds for people in need.

If this isn’t a crisis, then what are “contingency funds” for, anyway?

In Broward, Nan Rich was on a conference call Friday with an array of local organizations working in collaboration to keep people fed. She said they included the United Way, Children’s Services Council, both public hospital districts, food pantries and others.

When people join hands and work together, amazing things can happen.

But it’s unthinkable that the most bountiful nation on earth could ever get to this point — and over a partisan fight over keeping the government open. The second-longest shutdown in U.S. history is already causing massive havoc for federal workers and jeopardizing air safety as the busy holiday season draws near.

The federal government has never looked so hopeless or irrelevant.

All 43 of Florida’s Democratic state legislators urged Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare an emergency and intervene. Of course he didn’t, despite the fact that the budget he signed in June has $15.7 billion in cash set aside for emergencies.

“Nearly three million Floridians, including more than 1.5 million children, are at risk of losing
access to food assistance,” the lawmakers wrote to DeSantis. “For families already struggling under record food and housing costs, the loss of this critical support would be catastrophic. Local food banks and pantries have already reported overwhelming demand and depleted supplies.”

Hunger is a dire emergency, said the legislators, including Senate Democratic Leader Lori Berman of Boynton Beach and House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell of Tampa. Of the 43 who signed the letter, 11 represent Broward, six are from Palm Beach and nine are from the Orlando area.

“Florida has the fiscal strength to respond,” they wrote. “What’s needed now is the moral will to act. No parent should have to choose between paying rent and feeding their kids. No child
should go hungry because politicians in Washington can’t agree.”

Now, Trump’s lawyers want the court to “clarify” its orders. The president who unilaterally ordered the destruction of part of the White House posted online that he’s not sure he “has the authority” to provide food for Americans who might otherwise starve.

Steve Bousquet is Opinion Editor of the Sun Sentinel and a columnist in Tallahassee and Fort Lauderdale. Contact him at sbousquet@sunsentinel.com.