BREAKING: Trump admin to partially fund SNAP after court order

The partial funding will go forward, but it is not clear how much those getting benefits will receive.

“Per orders issued by the United States District Courts for the Districts of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, FNS [Food and Nutrition Service] intends to deplete SNAP contingency funds completely and provide reduced SNAP benefits for November 2025,” the Department of Agriculture said in court documents.

There are around $4.65 billion in contingency funds in SNAP for situations such as hurricanes and other emergencies. However, the federal government itself spends around $8 billion on SNAP benefits a month. Usually, those that are on SNAP get $190 per month for assistance in purchasing food. Currently, there are around 42 million Americans using the program.

An official from the Department of Agriculture said, “In addition to adjusting eligibility and benefit issuance files to accommodate the reduction, States must notify all SNAP households of the reduction, as well as handle any requests for fair hearings from SNAP households related to the reduction."

The partial funding comes after two judges last week ordered that despite the government shutdown, will have to continue. In the Senate, the GOP has proposed a clean continuing resolution several times to open back up the government, with the Democrats voting no on the measure in each instance.

Earlier in September, the Department of Agriculture said it legally could not transfer emergency funding if there was a government shutdown, but that was rejected by Judge Indira Talwani of the Boston US District court as well as Providence US District Judge John J. McConnell last week.