As Washington wrestles with funding decisions, Georgia’s food‐assistance safety net is under pressure.
More than 1.4 million Georgians, roughly 13% of the state’s population, rely on SNAP, according to the Georgia Budget & Policy Institute.
Who depends on SNAP in Georgia?
According to Center on Budget and Policy, in fiscal year 2024, 1,411,400 Georgians, about one in eight residents, received SNAP benefits.
An assortment of food sits at Food Bank for Larimer County in Fort Collins, Colo. on Oct. 28, 2025. Food Bank for Larimer County is feeling the pinch as the government shutdown stretches on and endangers November SNAP benefits.
According to the AJC, this is about 705,000 households in Georgia.
Among them, more than 69% live in households with children, and over 28% live in households where someone is elderly or has a disability.
In 2023, about 12.3% of Georgia households were “food insecure,” meaning that theiraccess to adequate food is limited by a lack of money and other resources.
Around 13.6% of the state’s population was below the poverty line, 18.4% of children lived in families below the poverty line, and 12.1% of older adults lived below the poverty line.
Why are SNAP benefits at risk?
The SNAP benefits are at risk because of the ongoing government shutdown. This means that SNAP benefits will not work starting Nov. 1, 2025.
The government shutdown, now the second-longest in U.S. history, is now on day 29.
When the government shuts down, most federal agencies are forced to close or scale back operations because Congress has not approved new funding.
Vanessa Countryman is the Trending Topics Reporter for the Deep South Connect Team Georgia. Email her at Vcountryman@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: How many people in Georgia use SNAP benefits? Food stamps by the numbers
