Headlines Monday November 3, 2025
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SNAP Benefits Cut Off; Durango Family ICE Arrest Noted as a Mistake; Polis Recommends Reducing Medicaid KGNU News
SNAP benefits cut off
A judge is giving the Trump administration until this Wednesday to restart a federal food assistance program that it put on hold during the ongoing government shutdown.
Rhode Island District Court judge John J. McConnell Jr. said there is “no question” that the U.S. Department of Agriculture must use an available contingency fund to provide people with food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. The SNAP program provides food assistance to some 42 million Americans, including about 19,000 people in Boulder County. The Rhode Island judge’s ruling came on the heels of another ruling, this one by a federal judge in Boston, who also said that interrupting SNAP benefits is illegal.
Trump indicated on his social media site that he would be willing to provide the funding if he were given appropriate legal direction. This is all according to Colorado Newsline. In spite of the court rulings, SNAP recipients might still see delays in their benefits, according to some officials. Local food banks are expecting an increased demand from people needing food. The City of Boulder has made a list of resources available to those who need food. That list can be found at bouldercolorado.gov/news
A listing of statewide food resources can be found at feedingcolorado.org. There is also an interactive map to find additional food resources. Meanwhile, Boulder County officials remind everyone who is eligible to continue to either apply for, or renew, all benefits. They add that Social Security, Medicare, Health First Colorado, and Child Health Plan Plus are not currently affected by the government shutdown.
A listing of statewide food resources
WIC, SNAP, TANF, and Housing Choice Vouchers
Durango family ICE arrest noted as a mistake
The arrest of a Colombian man and his family in southwest Colorado may have been a case of mistaken identity, according to advocates for the family. Fernando Jaramillo-Solano and his children were arrested after masked immigration officers pulled them over last week. They had thought Jaramillo-Solano was someone else, according to the Colorado Sun, but arrested him and his children anyway. After being held in Durango they were transferred to an immigrant detention center in Texas, where they remain.
Compañeros Four Corners Immigrant Resource Center says the family has an active asylum case, and a legal right to be in the United States. They added that Fernando Jaramillo-Solano has no criminal history, and there was no active warrant for his arrest. This account was corroborated by immigration officials in federal court Friday, according to the Colorado Sun. That testimony came in a hearing challenging the immigration agency’s arrest practices in Colorado.
A bipartisan group including Democratic senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, and Republican Representative Jeff Hurd, is working to get the family released. Since the arrest, hundreds of protestors have demonstrated in Durango, in southwestern Colorado. State investigators have launched a probe into Immigration and Customs officials’ use of force during those protests. The family, meanwhile, has not been separated. But advocates say while they were held in Durango, they were kept in a small, windowless cell, with only potato chips and water. They say they have received better food in Texas.
Polis recommends reducing medicaid
The Colorado Sun reports that Medicaid spending has increased 8.8% per year for the past decade, which is double the amount permitted under the state’s Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. Roughly 1.2 million Coloradans are covered by Medicaid, funded by a mixture of federal and state dollars. The state is faced with a strained fiscal environment following congressional Republicans’ approval of H.R. 1, the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act. That bill cut roughly $750 million in state finances. According to the Colorado Newsline, there will be decreases to departmental administration costs, from a 34% decrease in the governor’s office to an 11% decrease to The Department of Early Childhood in order to balance the state budget. Current levels of government programs and services will be challenging to maintain into the future.
The governor’s office is partnering with a third party comparing Colorado’s Medicaid program with national benchmarks to give insight on slowing Medicaid spending rates. This report will be publicly available in late December or early January.
Election Day is tomorrow
Tomorrow is election day, and Colorado voters will decide numerous issues at the state and local levels. Mail-in ballots can no longer be submitted, as they’ll arrive too late to be counted, but filled-in ballots can be dropped at official ballot boxes and voting centers until 7 p.m. on Tuesday. You can register to vote at any time and any Colorado voter can cast their ballot immediately after they register.
More on county ballot measures
Native American heritage month
November is Native American Heritage Month in Boulder County. In making that proclamation, County Commissioners also announced the county’s new Native American-American Indian Relations Manager. They said Karen Wilde’s appointment to the permanent, full-time position is a “crucial step in Boulder County’s journey” from acknowledging Indigenous People as the region’s original inhabitants, to meaningful action with native peoples. Native American Heritage Month events include a performance by the Rocky Mountain Indigenous Dancers. That’s in Longmont this Saturday, November 8th, from 11a.m. to 4p.m. at the Longmont Senior Center.
