In a significant development, the US Supreme Court has issued an emergency order to temporarily halt a lower court’s mandate requiring full Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food aid payments during the ongoing government shutdown. This decision, made on Friday, has introduced fresh uncertainty for millions of Americans relying on the nation’s largest anti-hunger program. The Trump administration had sought the stay, arguing that it needed to avoid overspending from the available contingency funds. The Supreme Court’s intervention came after the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the administration’s request to pause the lower court’s order. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson granted a two-day halt on the mandate, pending further review by the appeals court. The SNAP program, which supports 42 million Americans—approximately one-eighth of the population—ran out of funding on November 1 for the first time in its history. The administration had planned to use $4.65 billion from a contingency fund to cover 50% of November’s SNAP benefits, but the lower court had demanded full payments. The legal battle continues as the Justice Department prepares to appeal both the recent and earlier rulings.
US Supreme Court issues emergency order to block full SNAP food aid payments
