Federal judge orders full November SNAP payments
(CNN) — A federal judge in Rhode Island rules that the Trump administration must fully cover food stamp benefits for tens of millions of Americans in November.
US District Judge John McConnell said, “People have gone without for too long and not making payments to them for even another day is simply unacceptable.”
Nearly 42 million Americans receive food stamps.
Payments are made on a staggered basis over the course of a month.
The administration earlier said it would provide only partial food stamp benefits for November by tapping into $4.6 billion in a contingency fund.
The judge said the government had not worked quickly enough to release the funds pursuant to the requirements of his earlier order and that the government had acted “arbitrarily and capriciously” when it decided earlier this week that it would not provide the full benefits this month.
Under McConnell’s new ruling, the government must tap into billions of additional dollars held by the US Department of Agriculture in a separate pot of money so full SNAP benefits can be paid. The judge said those payments needed to be made to states, which administer the program, by Friday.
North Dakota Health and Human Services today announced that in accordance with federal court orders, some North Dakotans can expect to receive a partial November Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefit as early as November 7.
“We know how important these benefits are to families and individuals across North Dakota,” said HHS Commissioner Pat Traynor. “Our team has been working diligently to update systems, recalculate benefits and ensure households receive their adjusted benefits as quickly as possible.”
