After judge's order, Trump administration to issue partial SNAP payments with contingency funds

WASHINGTON (OSV News) -- The Trump administration has indicated that it will not appeal court orders directing it to pay SNAP benefits, but that it will only issue partial payments in November.

The Trump administration previously said funding for SNAP -- the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, a major part of the nation’s social safety net -- was scheduled to lapse Nov. 1 due to the federal government shutdown.

But Judge Jack McConnell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island said Oct. 31 the Agriculture Department must distribute the contingency funds “timely, or as soon as possible, for the November 1 payments to be made.”

In a Nov. 3 brief, USDA's lawyers wrote it “will fulfill its obligation to expend the full amount of SNAP contingency funds today.”

The brief said that the Food and Nutrition Service, which administers SNAP, will spend about $450 million of the contingency funds paying for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, or WIC, with another $150 million for food programs in the U.S. territories Puerto Rico and American Samoa, and the remaining $4.65 billion will pay for SNAP benefits, representing about 50% of payments to eligible households.

“This means that no funds will remain for new SNAP applicants certified in November, disaster assistance, or as a cushion against the potential catastrophic consequences of shutting down SNAP entirely,” the brief said.

About 42 million -- or 1-in-8 -- Americans rely on SNAP. Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed that in fiscal year 2023, 79% of SNAP recipient households included either a child, an elderly individual or a nonelderly individual with a disability.

Qualified SNAP recipients receive monthly allowances through electronic benefit transfer accounts, with SNAP EBT cards used like debit or credit cards to purchase essential foods and seeds to grow food. Sales tax, prepared food, pet foods, nonfood items, alcohol, tobacco, vitamins and medicine are excluded.

Catholic leaders and ministries were among those who raised alarm at the prospect of a lapse in federal food assistance.

Trump previously indicated his administration would not appeal the order in an Oct. 31 post on his social media website, Truth Social.

"Our Government lawyers do not think we have the legal authority to pay SNAP with certain monies we have available, and now two Courts have issued conflicting opinions on what we can and cannot do. I do NOT want Americans to go hungry just because the Radical Democrats refuse to do the right thing and REOPEN THE GOVERNMENT. Therefore, I have instructed our lawyers to ask the Court to clarify how we can legally fund SNAP as soon as possible."

But Trump said there would be a delay, pointing at Democrats' objections to a GOP-backed funding bill to keep the government open.

"It is already delayed enough due to the Democrats keeping the Government closed through the monthly payment date and, even if we get immediate guidance, it will unfortunately be delayed while States get the money out," he said. "If we are given the appropriate legal direction by the Court, it will BE MY HONOR to provide the funding, just like I did with Military and Law Enforcement Pay."

However, during a lengthy government shutdown during the first Trump administration, the Department of Agriculture authorized early processing of SNAP funds to ensure there would be no disruption in service, the Huffington Post noted.

In a post on X, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer replied that "USDA has the authority to fully fund SNAP and needs to do so immediately. Anything else is unacceptable."

"Trump’s 'decision' to follow the court order and only send partial SNAP benefits to 42 million hungry Americans as Thanksgiving approaches is cruel and callous," he said.

"Trump should focus less on his ballroom and his bathroom and more on the American people," Schumer added in reference to recent White House renovations, which include the demolition of the East Wing.

In anticipation of a lapse in federal food assistance programs, Catholic Charities USA, the network organization dedicated to carrying out the domestic humanitarian work of the Catholic Church in the United States, announced a national fundraising effort to provide an emergency supply of food to Catholic Charities agencies around the country.