A federal judge in Rhode Island has ordered the Trump administration to immediately secure full funding for November’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. ruled on Thursday that the administration must find the money by Friday, criticizing officials for failing to account for the severe consequences that partial payments would have on millions of low-income households. “The defendants failed to consider the practical consequences associated with this decision to only partially fund SNAP,” McConnell said during a bench ruling.
The decision followed lawsuits filed by several cities, nonprofits, and Democratic state officials challenging the administration’s plan to release just 65 percent of full benefits, a move that could have left some SNAP users with nothing. Approximately 42 million Americans rely on SNAP, including 16 million children, who McConnell warned were at risk of going hungry if full aid was not restored.
READ ALSO: White House to issue partial SNAP payments despite Trump’s threat
The order also came in the context of a prolonged federal government shutdown, now putting pressure on the White House to pay roughly $9 billion in benefits from emergency reserves. McConnell and another federal judge had earlier blocked efforts to skip November benefits entirely.
Despite the ruling, government lawyers moved quickly to appeal, arguing that only Congress can authorize full funding and insisting that funds are needed elsewhere. Trump administration attorney Tyler Becker blamed Congress for failing to end the shutdown. “This all comes down to Congress not having appropriated funds because of the government shutdown,” he said.
READ ALSO: Trump administration bows to legal pressure, promises partial SNAP aid in November
Opposing counsel argued the cuts were political. “What defendants are really trying to do is to leverage people’s hunger to gain partisan political advantage in the shutdown fight,” attorney Kristin Bateman said.
With procedural delays and reprogramming hurdles, officials acknowledged that even partial aid may take weeks or months to reach recipients. That leaves people like Carmel Scaife, a Milwaukee woman surviving on disability benefits and $130 a month in SNAP, forced to choose between food and other necessities. “That’s the only way I can survive,” she said of her shrinking food budget in an AP report.
As legal wrangling continues, groups like Democracy Forward vow to keep fighting. “We shouldn’t have to force the President to care for his citizens,” CEO Skye Perryman stated.
READ ALSO: Judges compel Trump administration to fund SNAP using emergency reserves during shutdown
