As the federal government shutdown continues, Audubon Area Community Services is beginning to feel the ripple effects, with local leaders warning that extended delays could disrupt essential services that thousands of area residents rely on.
Executive Director Brandon Harley said more than 80% of the organization’s budget comes from federal and state grants, many of which have been affected by the shutdown. Though most programs are still operating as normal, Harley said Audubon has begun using reserve funds to continue feeding residents at the Owensboro Regional Recovery Center, which depends on SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) for food costs.
“Annually, we budget just under $200,000 a year in SNAP funds,” Harley said. “Really, it’s about $15,000 or so a month that we would utilize in food when we’re at maximum capacity. With the SNAP shutdown, we’re having to pull out some funds we have in reserve and use other funds to continue to help run that program.”
The recovery center houses roughly 100 men, many referred by the Department of Corrections or probation and parole. Harley said maintaining meal service has been the immediate challenge, but the larger concern lies ahead if the shutdown continues.
Transportation and Head Start programs — two of Audubon’s largest — remain funded for now, Harley said. Medicaid reimbursements for transportation haven’t been interrupted, but the agency’s Head Start program could start feeling pressure in December if the impasse continues.
“At this point, all our grants are in place through the end of this month,” Harley said. “But our Head Start program may start to be impacted by the federal shutdown if it stretches into December based upon the timing of our grant.”
Beyond funding, Harley said communication has been a challenge since many federal employees are furloughed.
“There’s nobody up there at the federal level who’s readily available to assist us or take our calls to provide guidance,” he said. “We’re kind of flying blind.”
Audubon is also monitoring other programs that could be disrupted, such as the Child and Adult Care Food Program through the USDA, which helps feed children in Head Start centers and participants in adult day care programs. For now, the state has pledged to pay obligations through November, but Harley said future reimbursements are uncertain.
According to Harley, roughly 5,800 households in Daviess County currently rely on SNAP benefits. Many of those include children or seniors.
“The majority of folks that I see and that I’ve served are really the working poor of our community,” he said. “They’re out working, oftentimes multiple jobs. They don’t make great wages, and they’re doing what they can to help feed their families.”
He said misconceptions persist about who benefits from federal aid.
“In any system, you’re going to have a degree of waste, fraud, and abuse,” Harley said. “But it is far more the exception than the rule. The folks who are utilizing these programs are really in need and doing the best they can on a day-to-day basis.”
Harley added that despite the strain, community members have stepped up to help.
“You can open up your social media and see a lot of folks making donations to food banks or trying to take care of their neighbors,” he said. “That’s always good to see within our area.”
Still, he cautioned that the coming weeks will be critical.
“We have the holiday season coming up. We’ve got people out here who need SNAP benefits, and the longer this goes, it’s going to start to cause more and more kinks in the system,” Harley said. “We have an obligation to our community and to our staff, and we’re going to do all we can to keep things running as long as we can.”
