People in some US states will be able to buy groceries using federally funded SNAP benefits on Saturday while people in other states are still waiting for November food stamps that have been delayed by a long legal battle over the federal government shutdown.
Trump administration in the beginning he said last month It will not be funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Benefits for November due US government shutdown. the Twists and turns It has since compounded uncertainty for the roughly 1 in 8 Americans who receive monthly SNAP benefits to spend at grocery stores and farmers markets.
On Friday, some states began issuing people’s full monthly SNAP benefits, a day after a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to make the money available.
But on Friday night, Superior Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson temporarily stayed that injunction to allow time for the appeals court to decide whether to issue a permanent stay. Jackson acted because she was handling emergency matters from the state of Massachusetts.
Nearly 42 million Americans receive SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps, to help with grocery shopping. Most of them have an income below the poverty line, which is about $32,000 for a family of four.
An individual can receive a maximum monthly food benefit of about US$300, and for a family of four up to about US$1,000, although many receive less than that under a formula that takes into account their income.
Delays in payments have led to increased demand at food banks and pantries across the country, as well as long lines for free meals or drive-thru gifts.
Some states have provided emergency funding to food banks to help them respond to growing needs. Some states also used their own dollars to fund direct payments to people while federal benefits were in limbo.
Whether SNAP beneficiaries see money on their Electronic Benefits Transfer cards depends on where they live.
In Hawaii, Oregon and Wisconsin, officials acted quickly after a judge ordered full benefits paid Thursday to direct EBT providers to process full payments.
“We moved quickly once everything was verified,” Joseph Campos II, deputy director of the Hawaii Department of Human Services, told The Associated Press.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, said state workers “worked through the night” to issue the full November benefits “to make sure every Oregon family who relies on SNAP can buy groceries” over the weekend.
Officials in California, Kansas, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington also confirmed that some SNAP recipients received their full payments for November on Friday.
More than 250,000 families who forego their regular monthly SNAP payments during the first week of November received the full amount on Friday, said Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, a Democrat. The remaining beneficiaries will receive their November funds on regularly scheduled dates later this month – if the distribution does not remain blocked by legal challenges.
The Trump administration said in a legal filing with the Supreme Court that “there is no mechanism in place for the government to recover those funds” that have already been distributed.
Before Jackson ordered the pause, Colorado and Massachusetts said SNAP participants could get their full payments for November as soon as Saturday. New York said access to full SNAP benefits should begin by Sunday. New Hampshire said full benefits should be available over the weekend.
Arizona, Connecticut and Minnesota all said full SNAP benefits should be available in the coming days.
It’s still unclear whether people will actually get these benefits on their EBT cards.
For people in some other states, the wait seems likely to extend into next week. Several state officials said they were waiting for more guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the SNAP program.
Because of the federal government shutdown, the Trump administration originally said SNAP benefits would not be available in November. After two judges ruled that the administration could not skip November benefits entirely, the administration said it would use an emergency reserve fund containing more than $4.6 billion to provide partial benefits in November.
The judge said Thursday that was not enough, and ordered other funds to be used to make the full monthly payment. The Trump administration has appealed the ruling, asking a higher court to suspend any orders requiring it to spend more money than is available in the emergency fund. That’s what led to Jackson being issued temporary custody late Friday.
Associated Press reporters from across the U.S. contributed to this report.