Supreme Court extends order allowing withholding of SNAP food benefits
The U.S. Supreme Court extended its order allowing the Trump administration to withhold $4 billion in food assistance from tens of millions of people through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), despite a lower court ruling. The legal saga has brought immense uncertainty to beneficiaries, though the issue may soon be resolved following the Senate's approval of compromise legislation aimed at ending the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.
The highest court in the United States, the Supreme Court, has extended a previous order allowing President Donald Trump's administration to withhold food assistance from tens of millions of people in the U.S. amid the ongoing government shutdown.
In a ruling issued on Tuesday, the Supreme Court extended a temporary pause it had granted the Trump administration. This pause came after a lower court had ordered the government to disburse approximately $4 billion in food benefits for November.
Advocates have strongly cautioned that withholding these funds could have severe, detrimental effects on people who depend on the financial assistance provided through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). However, the entire legal issue could be rendered moot as the government shutdown appears to be drawing to a close.
The Supreme Court decision follows the Senate's approval on Monday of compromise legislation that is intended to end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history. The weeks-long political impasse had already disrupted food benefits for millions, left hundreds of thousands of federal workers unpaid, and caused significant issues with air traffic due to a lack of air traffic controllers.
The legal battle over SNAP benefits has highlighted the Trump administration’s aggressive efforts to slash government employment and reduce access to various programs, which it had previously criticized, under the auspices of the shutdown.
While delays are common for certain benefits during government shutdowns, the complete cessation of food benefits at the start of November marked a first in the program’s 60-year history. This controversial decision sparked a series of legal challenges and several weeks of back-and-forth rulings that have kept those who rely on food assistance in a state of limbo.
Last week, a judge had ruled that the government must fully fund benefits for November, a decision the administration subsequently challenged. The Supreme Court had initially paused that order, and the stay was set to expire on Thursday before being extended on Tuesday.
