SAUL LOEB / AFP
As the US government shutdown surpasses five weeks, a recent USDA directive threatens to disrupt assistance for families relying on food stamps. The order demands states retract any actions taken to issue full November Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program payments.
USDA Orders Reversal of SNAP Disbursements
In a late-night memo dated Saturday, the US Department of Agriculture informed regional SNAP directors that states lacked authorization to send the full allotment of November benefits. “Accordingly, States must immediately undo any steps taken to issue full SNAP benefits for November 2025,” the memo states. It further instructs officials to, “Please advise the appropriate FNS Regional Office representative of steps taken to correct any actions taken that do not comply with this memorandum.”
The notice warns noncompliant states could face “cancellation of the Federal share of State administrative costs and holding States liable for any overissuances that result from the noncompliance.”
Benefits Caught in Shutdown Standoff
Roughly 42 million Americans depend on SNAP to purchase groceries. Yet with the shutdown now the longest in US history, the program has become a key bargaining chip in the impasse.
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of federal workers remain furloughed or unpaid. Many air traffic controllers—whose paychecks are at stake—have stopped reporting for duty, forcing the FAA to ground flights ahead of Thanksgiving.
Legal Battle Over Emergency Funds
Despite the USDA’s plan to halt SNAP benefits on November 1, a Rhode Island court ordered the agency to tap emergency reserves. In a November 3 filing, the USDA acknowledged that it “is complying with the Court’s order and will fulfill its obligation to expend the full amount of SNAP contingency funds.”
President Trump, however, took to Truth Social on November 4 to assert that benefits would remain suspended until the shutdown ends. The administration subsequently appealed the lower court ruling, and the Supreme Court has paused the Rhode Island order pending further proceedings, allowing the USDA to withhold November payouts.
