About 1 in 8 U.S. residents get an average of $187 a month per person in the food assistance known as SNAP. For the first time, the Trump administration stopped the payments due at the beginning of the month.

Emergency funding and expanded food distribution as organizations across Central Indiana brace for a surge in need.

The government shutdown not only impacts federal programs like food assistance, it also means important workforce data gets delayed — like Indiana's monthly employment report. The report highlights the state's unemployment data and labor force participation rate, among other things.

Portage Township Trustee Jason Critchlow says SNAP recipients shouldn't wait until Nov. 1 to prepare to lose their benefits. He suggests keeping current on paperwork, trying to stretch food spending more this week, and reaching out to food pantries.

"Every day, every week, it moves in that direction because when you look at our political competitors, they're pretty well gerrymandered across every state they control," Braun told reporters in Elkhart County on Wednesday.

Other programs not impacted — yet.

The FAFSA form for the 2026 academic year went live Wednesday as scheduled, despite a government shutdown.