Trump administration says SNAP will be partially funded after judges’ rulings
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said it would not continue the funding in November due to the government shutdown.
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President Donald Trump’s administration says it will partially fund the SNAP food aid program after a pair of judges’ rulings required the payments to continue. That means grocery aid will resume for 1 in 8 Americans, though it has been delayed for millions already and the amount beneficiaries receive will be reduced.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said it would not continue the funding in November due to the government shutdown. Two federal judges ruled last week that the government was required to keep the program running. But both gave the administration leeway to pay for it entirely or partially. It can normally take up two weeks to load beneficiaries’ debit cards.
President Donald Trump’s administration said Monday that it will partially fund SNAP after a pair of judges’ rulings required it to keep the food aid program running.
It’s not clear how much beneficiaries will receive, nor how quickly beneficiaries will see value show up on the debit cards they use to buy groceries. The process of loading the cards, which involves steps by state and federal government agencies and vendors, can take up to two weeks in some states. The average monthly benefit is usually about $190 per person.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the nation’s largest food program, said last month that benefits for November wouldn’t be paid out due to the federal government shutdown. That set off a scramble by food banks, state governments and the nearly 42 million Americans who receive the aid to find ways to ensure access to groceries.
Most states have boosted aid to food banks, and some are setting up systems to reload benefit cards with state taxpayer dollars.
It also spurred lawsuits.
Federal judges in Massachusetts and Rhode Island ruled separately but similarly Friday, telling the government that it was required to use one fund with about $5 billion to pay for the program, at least in part. The benefits and administration cost over $8 billion per month.
The judges gave the government the option to use additional money to fully fund the program and a deadline of Monday to decide.
Judge John J. McConnell Jr., in Providence, Rhode Island, said if the government chose full funding, it would need to make payments Monday. With a partial version, which would require recalculating benefits, the payment deadline is Wednesday.
Trump posted on social media soon after that he would abide by the rulings but didn’t explain how.
