Save the Children and Save the Children Action Network Welcome Congressional Action Restoring Vital Nutrition Support for Kids and Families

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (November 13, 2025) — Save the Children and its political advocacy arm, Save the Children Action Network (SCAN), welcome Congress’s clear vote of support for essential nutrition programs through passage of a legislative package that restores funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). These investments reflect strong bipartisan recognition of how vital nutrition programs are for children, families and communities across the country. 

The legislative package allows for states to begin to issue full November SNAP benefits to families, providing much-needed relief. Additionally, it appropriates funding to both SNAP and WIC for fiscal year 2026, ensuring these critical nutrition programs can operate while replenishing the contingency reserves that were fully exhausted during the shutdown. Save the Children appreciates these funds while acknowledging the harmful changes made to SNAP in the reconciliation bill signed into law in July will impact the program’s effectivity and reach.  

During the recent federal shutdown, millions of children and families faced uncertainty about whether they would continue receiving the food assistance they rely on to make ends meet. Save the Children, together with partners, mobilized quickly to fill urgent gaps, providing emergency cash assistance, child-focused supplies and nutritious food to children and families in need across the country, especially rural communities with limited access to family resources. 

“Congress’s action to ensure the continuation of SNAP and WIC is an important and welcome step,” said Christy Gleason, Chief Policy Officer for Save the Children. “But the last few weeks have underscored a painful truth: When the government shuts down, kids suffer first and worst. Organizations like Save the Children will continue to step up in moments of crisis, but this kind of emergency response is not sustainable. Every child in America deserves reliable access to nutritious food.” 

SCAN emphasized the broader lessons of this crisis. 

“The shutdown revealed just how many families, especially in rural communities, depend on programs like SNAP to feed their children,” said Diana Onken, SCAN’s Acting Deputy. “As the government reopens and funding resumes, we must remember that while this crisis may be over, hunger is not. Policymakers must use the tools now available – including nutrition programs like Summer EBT – to ensure kids have consistent access to nutritious food. Federal and state lawmakers both have a vital role to play in making sure no child goes hungry because of political gridlock.” 

While full SNAP assistance is being restored and contingency funds replenished through 2026 appropriations, Save the Children and SCAN continue to urge policymakers to maintain robust funding for programs that support children’s healthy development, including Head Start and the Child Care and Development Block Grant, whose funding was only extended until January 30. 

“For families living paycheck to paycheck, even a short disruption can push them to the brink,” Gleason said. “We must treat investments in children’s education and nutrition not as optional line items, but as essential commitments to the nation’s future.” 

About Save the Children: 

Save the Children has been supporting kids across the United States since 1932, and today it works in over 250 rural communities to close the early education gap for kids living in poverty. Through Save the Children Action Network, the organization advocates for policies that prioritize kids and families, because investing in children is the smartest investment we can make. 

About Save the Children Action Network (SCAN): 

Save the Children Action Network is committed to ensuring every child has a strong start in life. SCAN mobilizes grassroots advocates, supports bipartisan leaders, and advances policies that expand access to early learning and end child hunger in the U.S. and around the world.