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The Trump administration on Friday asked a federal appeals court to pause a judge’s order requiring it to fully fund SNAP benefits this month, saying the government shutdown has left it without enough money to comply.
The filing came just hours after U.S. District Judge John McConnell ordered the administration to deliver full Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments to states by Friday, sharply criticizing what he called “unacceptable delays” that have left millions of low-income Americans without food assistance.
“This is a crisis, to be sure, but it is a crisis occasioned by congressional failure,” the administration said in its appeal, arguing that the issue “can only be solved by congressional action.”
Partial payments and funding limits
The administration said it could only fund about 65% of normal SNAP benefits for November, using $4.65 billion in contingency funds. It has resisted a proposal to tap Section 32 funds — a pool used to support child nutrition and school lunch programs — saying that would jeopardize those programs without a guarantee of replenishment.
“This Court should allow USDA to continue with the partial payment,” the filing said, warning that diverting billions from child nutrition programs “with no certainty of their replenishment” would create “an untenable fiscal imbalance.”
Court order and legal battle
Judge McConnell, ruling Thursday in Providence, R.I., said the administration’s partial payments violated his earlier order requiring full, “expeditious and efficient” benefit delivery. He accused officials of failing to comply in good faithand noted that families across the country were already going hungry.
“People have gone without for too long,” McConnell said in court. “Not making payments to them for even another day is simply unacceptable. This should never happen in America.”
The court dispute stems from a lawsuit filed by Democracy Forward, a progressive legal advocacy group that challenged the administration’s initial plan to withhold all SNAP funding during the shutdown.
Under pressure, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) began issuing partial payments Monday, authorizing states to load benefits onto EBT cards at reduced levels. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said USDA had “done its part” by releasing the money and providing guidance to states.
But McConnell disagreed, writing that the administration’s actions “fell short of what the law and decency require.”
Impact on families
The fight marks the first time in SNAP’s 61-year history that benefits have been interrupted due to a federal shutdown. Food banks and anti-hunger organizations say they have seen a surge in demand as families report skipping meals or relying on low-cost staples like cereal and ramen.
Advocates estimate that more than 40 million Americans depend on SNAP to help put food on the table each month.
The appeals court is expected to rule on the administration’s emergency request as early as this weekend.
