A Federal Court Orders the Government to Pay Overdue SNAP Benefits

The Trump administration says it will issue partial payments this month to the roughly 42 million Americans who rely on food assistance, offering only a limited reprieve to low-income families as the government shutdown stretches into its sixth week.

The announcement came Monday, just days after two federal judges ordered the administration to resume funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, after the White House initially refused to use the $5 billion in emergency reserves Congress had approved to sustain the program.

The decision to fund only part of the monthly benefits marks a sharp break from precedent and leaves millions of families — including 16 million children — facing uncertainty. Federal officials said households may receive about half of their usual SNAP benefits this month, though it remains unclear when the aid will actually arrive.

“There’s a process that has to be followed,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNN. “President Trump wants to make sure that people get their food benefits.”

Judge John J. McConnell Jr., of the U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, had explicitly ordered the administration to distribute funds “as soon as possible,” giving officials the option to make full payments by Monday or partial payments by Wednesday. In his order, he encouraged the U.S. Agriculture Department to tap an additional account funded by tariff revenues to cover full benefits.

But in court filings, the administration said it would not use that account, arguing that doing so would “stray from congressional intent.” Critics pointed out that the same pool of funds had already been used to sustain another federal nutrition program during the shutdown.

“This is a temporary fix that doesn’t meet the full need,” says Heather Taylor, director of Bread for the World. “It means some families may get half of what they rely on to buy groceries, and others may wait weeks to receive anything at all. For families already living paycheck to paycheck, that’s devastating.”

SNAP serves about 12% of the U.S. population, providing essential food assistance to households that are overwhelmingly vulnerable. According to the USDA, 83% of SNAP benefits go to households with children, seniors or people with disabilities. About 39% of participants are children, while 20% are elderly and 10% are non-elderly adults with disabilities.

On average, households receive about $350 per month, and nearly three-quarters of SNAP families live below the federal poverty line. Many run out of benefits before the month’s end, turning to food banks and churches to fill the gap.

“The shutdown adds another layer of strain to an already stretched emergency food system,” says Celia Cole, CEO of Feeding Texas.

Roughly 1 in 8 Americans rely on SNAP, and Cole says state and local food pantries cannot make up for the roughly $8 billion in monthly federal aid the program provides nationwide.

Taylor warns that even partial payments could deepen inequality between states.

“Some states, like Virginia, have said they can cover the costs in the short term,” she says. “Others have made it clear they can’t. We’re looking at a nation where families will be impacted in different ways, but they will be impacted — especially children, the elderly and people living in rural or impoverished communities.”

Advocates are calling on the administration to fully fund the program, saying the new plan does not satisfy the court’s intent. Skye Perryman, president of the nonprofit Democracy Forward, which represented plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said her group is “considering all legal options to secure payment of full funds.”

“It shouldn’t take a court order to force our president to provide essential nutrition that Congress has made clear needs to be provided,” she said in a statement.

The Justice Department has not clarified when the partial benefits will reach families or whether more funding could be released later this month. The uncertainty is already taking a toll, Taylor says.

“Families are waiting in line at grocery stores and food banks not knowing what will happen,” she says. “This isn’t political — it’s about whether kids eat this week. The resources exist. We just need the will to use them.”