BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to pay SNAP benefits, bringing hope to approximately 300,000 Kern County residents who rely on the program. However, uncertainty remains about when families will actually receive their benefits.
"We know what the ruling is, but the guidance that was given was that the funds will be released on how the courts kind of give guidance on how that should be done," said Jeffrey Marsh with the Community Action Partnership of Kern (CAPK).
While Marsh called the court order "great news," he emphasized that significant delays still lie ahead for families waiting for assistance.
"We're still looking at several days before the clarification even comes on how those benefits will be released, and then the delay of them getting released from the federal government to the state level and then to our individuals that have those benefits," Marsh said.
CAPK continues preparing food boxes for distribution as demand increases throughout the county. The organization has been fielding more calls from partner agencies reporting heightened need among residents.
"We get phone calls from our existing partners that do a wonderful job distributing food throughout the county, and the increase in the demand and the fear and anxiety is higher and higher," Marsh said.
Despite the ongoing uncertainty, Marsh believes the court ruling provides some comfort to struggling families in Kern County.
"I think there's definitely a huge sigh of relief that comes with knowing that at least some aid and relief is on the way from the SNAP benefit side. I think that there's still going to be a lot of fear and anxiety because we still don't know when or how much that we're going to be getting through these funds for our resident," Marsh said.
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