SNAP recipients, states await federal ruling on benefits
While the House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on a bill that could reopen the federal government on Wednesday, questions still remain about funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Over the past two weeks the program became mired in legal battles over whether it should remain funded during the federal government shutdown.
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to offer clarity on Tuesday, Nov. 11. The court is responding to several days of conflicting messaging from a federal district court ruling and instruction from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Trump Administration.
On Thursday, Nov. 6, Judge John J. McConnell Jr. in Rhode Island ordered the federal government to fully fund SNAP. On Friday, some states, including Minnesota, took action to have full benefits issued to participants. In Minnesota, SNAP recipients began seeing the money appear in their accounts on Nov. 8.
Late on Friday, Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson issued an order to temporarily pause Thursday’s decision to allow an appeals court in Massachusetts 48 hours to rule.
On Saturday, Nov. 9, state SNAP directors received a directive from the USDA instructing them to “undo” the action. In response, the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), which oversees SNAP in the state, released a statement saying that it was impossible to rescind the benefits already dispersed, and that they remain committed to providing the 440,000 Minnesotans who rely on SNAP with food access assistance.
Leaders in other states made similar statements, despite the threat of repercussions for states who do not reverse the action made by Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture Patrick Penn.
The question of whether the program must be funded remains in the courts. Thursday’s ruling instructed the federal government to use money in an emergency account to fund the program. In response, the Trump administration argued that the ruling was judicial overreach, since decisions about how federal money is spent is made by the legislative branch.
On Monday, the Massachusetts appeals court ruled in favor of requiring full federal funding of the program, and that the ruling will stand unless the Supreme Court offers a conflicting decision by Tuesday night.
As the states await the decision, SNAP recipients have been left with questions. In a Nov. 10 update from DCYF issued to counties and shared with WTIP, the department attempted to make the situation for SNAP users clearer.
“USDA has confirmed that households may continue to use benefits that are on their card through the duration of the shutdown,” the update read. “We are aware that USDA has the ability to de-authorize EBT retailers, but we do not have indication at this time that USDA will use that authority. ”
On the question of potential penalties against states who issued benefits on Friday before the stay from the Supreme Court, the DCYF update stated, “USDA cannot take action against states who paid full November benefits until further order of the Court.”
The update added that county and tribal human services departments should continue to accept and process new SNAP applications.
With the situation shifting rapidly, the update read, “DCYF is monitoring court orders and working to continue to ensure food access for all Minnesotans.”
This is an ongoing story and WTIP will provide updates as they become available.
Kirsten Wisniewski November 11, 2025
