By Shirleen Guerra | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – The federal government reopened late Wednesday night after a 43-day shutdown, and many Virginians spent Thursday morning checking their pay, benefits and the services they rely on.
Congress approved the funding package in a 222-209 vote. President Donald Trump signed it immediately, ending what federal agencies said was the longest shutdown in U.S. history.
Virginia officials said they were notified on Nov. 9 that 65% of November SNAP benefits would be issued this week for more than 850,000 people across the commonwealth. Deposits began hitting accounts Thursday as federal systems restarted.
A Mechanicsville mother told The Center Square she checked her card before work and found the benefits had posted. She said it was “a huge relief” after weeks of strain.
“At least now I have something,” she said. “The last month has been pretty hard, but knowing the benefits finally came through is a huge relief.”
Virginia’s members of Congress reacted quickly to the reopening bill, splitting strictly along party lines. All five Republican representatives voted for the measure while Virginia’s six Democrats voted against it.
Republicans said the shutdown needed to end immediately to restore pay for federal employees and military families.
Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., said the bill “restores pay for federal employees and servicemembers” and “delivers key wins for Hampton Roads, America’s veterans, and working families.” Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va., called the 43-day lapse in government operations “devastating for American families” and said reopening federal agencies was necessary to “reinstate stability for Virginians.”
Democrats said they opposed the bill because it failed to address rising health care costs and included investigative language they viewed as problematic. Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., said the legislation “does nothing to address the health care affordability crisis,” arguing that the “larger legislation remains deeply flawed.”
Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., said the bill fully funds SNAP through September, calling it an important step to ensure lawmakers “can no longer play political games with people’s ability to feed their families.”
Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger said shutdowns “disproportionately hurt Virginians regardless of party affiliation,” and said she was relieved to see it end. She urged leaders to take “decisive action to stop the hike in healthcare costs thousands of Virginians are about to experience.”
Earlier this month, the commonwealth issued partial SNAP support through the Virginia Emergency Nutrition Assistance initiative, or VENA, to help households that lost access to federal benefits during the shutdown. Those payments were released weekly and were based on each family’s typical monthly SNAP amount.
Congress faces another funding deadline on Jan. 30.