Trump administration will fund 50% of SNAP with emergency money
The Trump management informed a federal judge that it will use the remaining $4.65 billion in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) contingency fund to provide partial benefits to current recipients during the government shutdown. This action follows a court order requiring the administration to use contingency funds to pay November SNAP benefits fully or partially.The administration stated it will not draw from other USDA funds to cover full payments, citing concerns about negatively impacting child nutrition programs. Officials warned that using all contingency funds for partial payments will leave no resources for new applicants, disaster assistance, or emergencies. The dispute arises amid an ongoing government shutdown wiht no immediate resolution, as the Senate continues to block stopgap funding bills. The shutdown approaches the record for the longest federal funding lapse in U.S. history.
Trump administration says it will issue reduced SNAP benefits with emergency funds during shutdown
The Trump administration told a federal judge on Monday that it will deplete the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program contingency fund to provide food stamp recipients with part of their monthly benefits.
Late last week, U.S. District Judge John McConnell ordered the administration to use contingency funds and either fully or partially fund November payments, demanding an update on the administration’s compliance by noon on Monday. The Trump administration told McConnell it would use all $4.65 billion of the remaining contingency funds to pay for partial benefits for November, saying in a filing to the court on Monday that it would not tap into other funds to make full SNAP payments.
“The above will leave a total of $4.65 billion in the contingency fund for November SNAP benefits that will all be obligated to cover 50% of eligible households’ current allotments,” Patrick Penn, deputy undersecretary for food, nutrition, and consumer services at the Agriculture Department, said in a declaration to the court.
“This means that no funds will remain for new SNAP applicants certified in November, disaster assistance, or as a cushion against the potential catastrophic consequences of shutting down SNAP entirely,” Penn said, warning about the effects of tapping into the fund, as the court ordered.
Later on Monday, the administration said it would provide states with tables on how to distribute the partial SNAP payments. While McConnell suggested that the administration could dig into other USDA funds, such as the Section 32 Child Nutrition Fund, to fund full SNAP benefits for November, Penn rejected that assertion, saying that doing so “merely shifts the problem to millions of America’s low-income children that receive their meals at school.”
“Section 32 Child Nutrition Program funds are not a contingency fund for SNAP,” Penn said. “Using billions of dollars from Child Nutrition for SNAP would leave an unprecedented gap in Child Nutrition funding that Congress has never had to fill with annual appropriations, and USDA cannot predict what Congress will do under these circumstances.”
The Trump administration’s filing comes on the day McConnell and U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ordered the administration to give an update on how it plans to at least partially fund SNAP benefits for November. Talwani separately ordered the administration to tap into the contingency fund to pay for monthly benefits.
The administration said it could not tap into the contingency fund because it was designed to be set aside for use in unforeseen emergencies, such as natural disasters, rather than for government shutdowns. Neither judge was convinced by the Trump administration’s arguments.
The SNAP funding court fight comes as the government shutdown enters its second month, with no sign of lawmakers in either party coming together to pass a funding bill anytime soon. The GOP-led House passed a stopgap funding bill in late September, which would fund the government through Nov. 21. However, in the Senate, the bill has failed to pass a Democrat-led filibuster 13 times.
BESSENT SAYS SNAP FOOD BENEFITS COULD RESTART IN JUST DAYS
While the GOP has a 53-47 majority in the Senate, the funding bill requires 60 votes to make it past a filibuster. The GOP spending bill has failed to pass that threshold, as Democrats attempt to force negotiations on expiring Obamacare subsidies.
The current shutdown is a day away from tying the 2018-2019 shutdown as the longest federal funding lapse in history.
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