As the federal government shutdown moves into its second month and the state budget impasse drags into its fifth, the consequences of political inaction are mounting.

Affordable Care Act premiums are poised to skyrocket, energy assistance is stalled, and a federal judge Friday ordered the Trump administration to keep SNAP benefits flowing a day before they were set to lapse.

Across the country, people are suffering at the hands of political gridlock as inaction by lawmakers in Harrisburg and Washington takes its toll on Americans of all ages and backgrounds.

Before a federal judge in Rhode Island issued Friday’s order on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, nearly 2 million Pennsylvanians prepared for what appeared to be a doomsday scenario for those suffering from food insecurity as program benefits were scheduled to come to a halt Saturday. The judge’s order, however, is just one temporary Band-Aid on a long list of funding problems.

“Even if the SNAP gets issued in a couple of days, all of these things are still happening. We still have a federal government shutdown, we still have a state budget impasse, and all of that money is still tied up in Harrisburg and Washington and is not getting to people in need,” state Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-West View, told TribLive on Friday.

Officials at Light of Life Rescue Mission, based in Pittsburgh’s Allegheny West neighborhood, were concerned it would become increasingly difficult to keep the food pantry stocked if SNAP benefits were halted, said spokeswoman Annie Cairns.

Following the federal judge’s order Friday, Gov. Josh Shapiro signed a declaration of disaster emergency, allocating $5 million in state funding to Feeding Pennsylvania, according to a news release.

“We’ll still see increase in services and needs during this time, especially if those (receiving SNAP benefits) may not know of the latest updates,” Cairns said after learning the news.

Senate Democrats applauded Shapiro and celebrated the court decision.

“As the Trump administration engages in another exercise in cruelty by attempting to withhold SNAP dollars, Gov. Shapiro has stepped up to ensure that our friends and neighbors have food on the table,” state Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, said in a news release.

Lack of compromise

While SNAP should continue for now, local political experts say Democratic and Republican lawmakers at both the state and federal levels have shown an unwillingness to compromise.

Berwood Yost, a political scientist who oversees polling at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, said politicians on both sides of the aisle appear to be more interested in scoring political points and fighting with one another than in finding a way to work together to end the shutdown and budget impasse.

“Among the most extreme partisans on both sides, compromise isn’t thought of as a necessary good anymore,” he said. “It’s the fight that matters. I think why we’re here is because of the current political climate. It’s brinksmanship.”

A spokesman for U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Butler, who was not made available for comment Friday, pointed reporters to a social media post from Kelly.

“Republicans are voting to fund the government. Democrats are repeatedly voting not to fund the government, including SNAP food assistance for Pennsylvania kids and families. It’s that simple,” the post on X said.

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, told TribLive on Friday there is a reason people feel the government is failing them.

“One side is playing … Russian roulette with people, while the other side is desperately trying to maintain, you know, these most critical programs,” Lee said. “It’s always being presented to people as a ‘both sides’ issue, but this is not a ‘both sides’ issue. It simply isn’t.”

Williams called the gridlock frustrating.

“It’s our job to get a state budget done on June 30. It’s Oct. 31 … they’re not wrong,” Williams said, referring to those who are critical of lawmakers for the impasse lasting this long. “We represent them, and to not get this done is shameful and frustrating, and I share with them in that.”

The state Department of Human Services on Wednesday announced the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) will be delayed because of the federal government shutdown. The program helps low-income Pennsylvania residents pay their heating bills.

“Obviously, this is an unprecedented, huge strain,” said Allegheny County Department of Human Services Director Erin Dalton.

Earlier, about 250 federal workers represented by the National Treasury Employees Union in Western Pennsylvania were furloughed.

While air traffic controllers with the Federal Aviation Administration and Transportation Security Administration officers continue to work without pay during the shutdown because they are deemed essential personnel, flight delays have become more commonplace because of increased absences, USA Today reported.

‘No incentive’

Alison Dagnes, a political science professor at Shippensburg University, said the federal court order on SNAP is good for beneficiaries but reduces pressure on federal politicians.

“Lacking a real pressure point that will push one side or the other into acquiescence, there’s really no incentive for the other side to bend,” she said.

Federal officials in today’s highly polarized political climate don’t want to compromise, she said.

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Braddock, offered a stark assessment Thursday to CNN.

“It’s an absolute failure what occurred here for the last month,” he said. “I’m apologizing.”

“This should not be happening,” U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Fox Chapel, added in a statement to TribLive.

“I know folks expect government to come through with basic services we all count on. Life is too much of a ripoff already, and government should be working on that,” Deluzio said. “I’ve been in Washington a bunch these past few weeks, ready to hash out a deal. But it takes two to tango.”

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