Washington, D.C
‘We are bracing for impact’: Federal funding cuts slash supplies at DC-area food banks – WTOP News
Some D.C.-area food banks are in a bind as President Donald Trump’s administration has made major cuts to programs providing them federal aid while demand for food banks has simultaneously soared.
Some D.C.-area food banks are in a bind as President Donald Trump’s administration has made major cuts to programs providing them federal aid, while demand for food banks has simultaneously soared.
At a food bank and pantry in McLean, Virginia, Food for Others Executive Director Deb Haynes told WTOP they’re feeling the effects of cuts made in March as inflation drives up the cost of replacing the canceled supply deliveries.
“We are expecting to probably have to feed more people with less food or with more expensive food,” Haynes said.
In March, the Trump administration cut $1 billion from federal programs aimed at getting American-grown food to people who are having trouble affording groceries.
Haynes said they’re still crunching the numbers on how supplies will be impacted by $500 million in cuts to the Department of Agriculture’s Emergency Food Assistance Program.
“It’s possibly going to cut how much of that food we receive by 50% to 100%. We don’t have hard numbers yet,” Haynes said. “We don’t know if the cuts are going to be spread out evenly over the country.”
Through that program, which is sometimes abbreviated as TEFAP, the USDA buys nutritious food and gets it into the hands of state’s distributing agencies.
“We are bracing for impact here,” Haynes said. “About 20% of the food that we distribute is through that program. We feed, at peak, about 4,500 families in a month with that food.”
Haynes said she estimates they’ll need about $1.5 million to replace the food from TEFAP.
In the case of the D.C. area, food from TEFAP is distributed by the Capital Area Food Bank. That organization was expecting to get food from 55 tractor-trailers from April through June.
Back in March, Capital Area Food Bank President and CEO Radha Muthiah said the organization found out it would only receive half those supplies.
Another $500 million was cut from the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement. Through that initiative, states were provided funding to buy crops grown by U.S. farmers and processed in the country. It was distributed to organizations such as the Capital Area Food Bank at no cost, and given out to people in need.
That program is not being renewed.
“We can no longer count on funding from USDA that we would use to purchase hundreds and thousands of pounds of good, nutritious food from local area farmers for our community members in need,” Muthiah said.
Food banks are also keeping an eye on the Farm Bill — legislation that’s being debated in Congress that would fund food benefits for low-income families. Haynes said there’s concern cuts could be made to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP.
“The more SNAP is cut, the less buying power families have to bring home groceries for their children and themselves,” Haynes said. “And if those school meals (get) cut, that’s a radical impact on children’s nutrition.”
Countering the loss in supplies
With hopes of countering the loss in funding, Haynes said Food for Others is boosting its food drives and looking to expand its program where it buys food that would otherwise go to waste at area grocery stores.
“We’re also looking at running different scenarios of where can we purchase food, how much it would cost, talking to our vendors, trying to get some estimates and be prepared, so that if we get hit with a big wave of need, that we’re prepared to bring in the food to meet it,” Haynes said.
The Capital Area Food Bank is working to make up for some of the lost meals for its local partners such as Food for Others.
“What we’re doing is pivoting to the other two sources of food that we rely on, and that’s donated food from area retailers, wholesalers, food drives, as well as purchased food,” Muthiah said.
Muthiah said it can be difficult to get more donated food quickly.
“We are having to purchase more food than we thought we might have to do at this stage of our year, and that we can only do with the generosity of our community to be able to help us,” she said.
The strain on supplies comes as several factors put pressure on food banks. Energy prices have made it costly to transport food, and should tariffs go into place, premiums on aluminum could make canned goods more expensive.
“Our dry goods vendors started raising prices even before the tariffs went into place,” Haynes said.
Inflation is making it more expensive to buy the food itself, which has driven more people to reach out for support. Haynes said Food for Others’ emergency referral program is up 25% compared to this time in 2024.
“We’re watching that very closely, and we’re shifting some of the incoming food to make sure that we’re meeting the need in that program, because those are families in crisis that do not have food,” Haynes said.
In the case of Food For Others, high grocery prices could be behind its dip in donations and spike in visitors.
Tens of thousands of federal workers have lost their employment, and as they run through their savings, local food banks expect to see a surge in visitors. Those layoffs have ripple effects — for example, people who work in the service industry may lose gigs as former federal workers cut back on paying for services like getting their homes cleaned.
“It’s an interesting perfect storm that’s developing with a reduction in supply, at the very same time, when we’re seeing more people in need of help from us,” Muthiah said.
“We met the challenge of COVID, and we will meet this challenge as well,” Haynes said. “That is in large part because everybody understands that everyone needs healthy food, and so we’re confident that we can meet the need and that our community will rally around us and help us do that.”
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A Virginia boater is suing a Washington water utility for negligence in the collapse of a pipe that leaked millions of gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River.
The class action lawsuit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland, comes weeks after a January sewage pipe collapse, shooting wastewater out of the ground and into the river in an area just north of Washington, D.C. The spill is seen as a serious environmental blight and became the focus of political bickering between President Donald Trump and Democratic-led Maryland, where the leak occurred.
Dr. Nicholas Lailas, M.D., the plaintiff, is a Virginia resident and recreational boat user on the Potomac who is seeking compensation for people “whose property interests in and use and enjoyment of the Potomac River … have been impaired by Defendant’s conduct.”
The lawsuit alleges that it was DC Water’s responsibility as the owner and operator of the ruptured pipe, known as the Potomac Interceptor, to maintain it in a “reasonably safe condition and to prevent foreseeable harm to persons and property.”
The lawsuit said that preliminary data indicate that there are thousands of people who own property or vessels in the affected parts of the Potomac.
Andrew Levetown, an attorney for the plaintiff, said in an interview Monday that it will take time to get the full breadth of the class, with business owners, property owners and recreational users all having interest in the potential damages caused by the Jan. 19 collapse and leak.
“You’re going to have businesses who lose business because instead of sitting next to the Potomac, their clients are sitting next to the open sewer,” he said.
The suit did not specify a damage amount. DC Water spokesperson John Lisle said in a statement that the collapse of the Potomac Interceptor was “a serious and unexpected event, and our teams remain focused on the response, environmental protection, and restoration efforts. Because this matter is currently subject to ongoing litigation, it would not be appropriate for us to comment further at this time.”
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser declared an emergency Feb. 18 and requested that President Donald Trump provide federal resources to help the city fight the leak that dumped 250 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River in its early stages. The president approved the emergency assistance days later to help the city address the emergency.
DC Water gave its most detailed assessment yet of why the Potomac River sewage spill occurred and what it will take to fix it. News4’s Mark Segraves reports.
DC Water said it knew the pipe, first installed in the 1960s, was deteriorating, and rehabilitation work on a section about a quarter-mile (400 meters) from the break began in September and was recently completed. The pipe that ruptured was scheduled for repair this summer.
DC Water’s updates say the emergency repairs are beyond the halfway point and there are no flows into the river.
At a public briefing last week, officials with the utility said they were assessing the cause of the rupture, including whether the way the pipeline was initially constructed contributed to the emergency. David Gadis, the CEO of DC Water, said at that briefing that while it was too early to say definitively, “we are seeing indication that this incident may have been highly unusual.”
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WASHINGTON — Get ready to start your engines, DC.
Officials unveiled the 1.66-mile circuit route Monday, where race cars will be zooming around the National Mall in August for the Freedom 250 Grand Prix in celebration of America’s birthday.
The seven‑turn layout features views of the Washington Monument, US Capitol, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, and part of Pennsylvania Avenue, IndyCar announced.
“This was a team effort,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said. “It’s Penske, it’s FOX, it’s the mayor, it’s Interior, it’s everybody else joining together not to make a profit, not to get your name out there but to say, let’s celebrate America.”
“Let’s celebrate America’s birthday.”
The first-ever street race around the National Mall will take place from Aug. 22-23, with the course itself set to be built up during the summer.
Drivers will also blast past the National Archives, the National Gallery of Art, and the Hirshhorn Museum, with a pit lane on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Officials debuted a red, white, and blue “Freedom 250 Grand Prix IndyCar” design Monday to honor the upcoming 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.
“We want people to plan their trips to D.C. now,” DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said. “Come for the Freedom 250, and then stay to enjoy our monuments and museums, our beautiful parks, world-class restaurants and hotels, and all the culture and entertainment that make us the best city in the world.”
President Trump took executive action back in January, tasking Duffy and Secretary of the Interior Sean Duffy to coordinate with Bowser on planning the feted event.
“The story of America is one of vision, courage, perseverance – and speed,” Monica Crowley, Trump’s representative for America’s 250th, said in a statement.
“Presidents Washington and Jefferson marked notable celebrations with spirited horse races; the Freedom 250 race will bring that historic tradition into the 21st century and renew a tremendous sense of patriotic pride.”
Trump’s team is eyeing other major sports events to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary, including a UFC fight at the White House. The US is also co-hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup over the summer.
Washington, D.C
Storm Team4 forecast, Enjoy a pleasant start to the week with temperatures in the 70s
4 things to know about the weather:
- “May” not “March” for now
- Next rain late Wednesday, Thursday
- Back to average by Friday
- Much colder next Week
The warmer weather we’ve waited months for will be with us for only three more days before the March Lion starts to roar again.
Monday and Tuesday will be the best days of the week by far. Sunny skies and temperatures running 20-25° above average. Plan for highs reaching the low 70s Monday and near 80° on Tuesday.
A series of cold fronts later in the week will send temperatures back to average 54° by the end of the week and then well below average for most of next week.
Clouds will return by Wednesday morning and rain chances will arrive no later than sunset. Wednesday will still be close to 80° and have our first taste of humidity in a while. Rain is likely from Wednesday evening through noon on Thursday as our first cold front arrives.
Thursday’s highs, likely near 70°, will occur before sunrise but gusty northwest winds will have temperatures falling steadily throughout the day. Expect temperatures in the 50s, rain for the morning commute and 40s with rain ending for the ride home.
Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to check the weather radar on the go.
Warm streak won’t last long
The good news is that Friday and the upcoming weekend look dry. Highs will be back in the mid-50s for Friday and Saturday but Sunday should get back into the mid-60s.
Another cold front will arrive early next week leading to temperatures running 10-15° below average. It’s also not entirely out of the question that there could be a wet snowflake or two on St. Patrick’s Day.
The return of the cold air next week will keep the cherry trees at bay so the odds of peak bloom occurring in March, like it has the last five to six years in a row, are looking slim at best.
QuickCast
MONDAY:
Mostly Sunny
Nice And Warm
Light Breeze
Wind: Southwest 5-10 mph
Chance of Rain: 0%
HIGHS: 68° to 74°
MONDAY NIGHT:
Clear Skies
Remaining Mild
Patchy Areas Of Fog
Wind: Variable 5 mph
Chance Of Rain: 0%
LOWS: 46° to 52°
TUESDAY:
Mostly Sunny
Near Record Warmth
Light Breeze
Wind: Southwest 5-10 mph
Chance of Rain: 0%
HIGHS: 76° to 82°
WEDNESDAY:
Breezy, Warm And Humid
Increasing Clouds
Showers By Evening
Wind: Southwest 10-25mph
Chance of Rain: 40%
HIGHS: 75° to 80°
THURSDAY:
Cloudy, Windy, Much Colder
Rain Likely Before 2pm
Falling Temperatures
Wind: Northwest 20-35 mph
Chance of Rain: 80%
HIGHS: 65° to 45°
Sunrise: 7:29 Sunset: 7:09
Average High: 54° Average Low: 37°
Stay with Storm Team4 for the latest forecast. Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to get severe weather alerts on your phone.
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