Governor Glenn Youngkin pauses VENA as SNAP benefits are expected to be distributed

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Governor Glenn Younkin announced that, following a federal notice that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits would be paid this week, Virginia will pause the issuance of Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance (VENA) benefits to comply with federal requirements.

The announcement came Sunday, Nov. 9, from the Governors office. This comes after a recent announcement from President Donald Trump that told states to, "immediately undo" actions to immediately send out full SNAP benefits to families according to reports.

The newly released funds are expected to be be available the week of Nov. 10 and to reflect the most up-to-date direction from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) directed all states to initiate a, "partial issuance" of SNAP benefits in accordance with the Trump administrations recent USDA guidelines which states that these benefits will be processed no later that Thursday No. 13.

"The Commonwealth launched VENA last week to ensure there was no interruption to food benefits for Virginians in need,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin. "Our top priority has been to ensure that every Virginian facing food insecurity knows that we are doing everything in our ability to provide food assistance. Now, based on federal guidance, we are committed to processing the federal SNAP benefits made available no later than Thursday. I want to thank our team at DSS and Health and Human Resources for their hard work and dedication.” 

According to a post on X, Governor Younkin states that, "Following new federal guidance, we anticipate that 65% of SNAP benefits for more than 850,000 Virginians will be issued no later than this upcoming Thursday, 11/14."

Secretary of Health and Human Resources Janet V. Kelly said, "This combined effort demonstrates Virginia’s unwavering dedication to the well-being of our neighbors while also protecting tax dollars for other worthy priorities."

Kelly added that, "Thanks to Governor Youngkin and our hard-working team at the Virginia Department of Social Services, Virginia led the nation in responding quickly to changing circumstances and delivering meaningful help to the most vulnerable Virginians."

The Governor added that, "In Virginia, we provided equivalent benefits to SNAP last week when no federal benefits were provided, with the launch of the Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance (VENA) effort to ensure families had uninterrupted access to food assistance, and we will continue to do everything possible to support Virginians in need. Thank you to our Virginia Department of Social Services and Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources teams for their tireless work delivering for Virginia families.”

Households who are SNAP beneficiaries can visit the Virginia Department of Social Services website for more information.

According to the release, The Virginia Department of Social Services remains dedicated to transparent and timely communication and will continue providing updates as soon as new information is available.