USDA officials estimate that a full month of November benefits requires approximately $8 billion. The administration acknowledged a $4 billion shortfall but declined to draw on an additional emergency pool financed by tariff revenue known as Section 32. Penn stated that diverting Section 32 dollars would jeopardize child nutrition initiatives, which rely on the same revenue stream to subsidize school meals for millions of low-income students.
“Shifting $4 billion to SNAP merely moves the crisis to the nation’s school cafeterias,” Penn wrote, describing the choice between programs as a “no-win quandary.” In the same filing, Justice Department attorneys said they have worked “diligently” to meet the court’s requirements despite the constraints of a government shutdown that has furloughed many federal employees.
Even with the money now designated, Penn cautioned that households may not see the reduced November allotment quickly. He told the court that state agencies, which administer SNAP at the local level, face “procedural difficulties” that could delay distribution “a few weeks to up to several months.” Those obstacles include reprogramming payment systems, recalculating individual benefits, and issuing revised notices to recipients.
Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee, criticized the decision to limit the payout to half of the monthly benefit and to leave Section 32 funds untouched. “The administration should stop playing politics with hunger and use every available resource so Americans can put food on the table,” she said in a written statement Monday.
Imagem: Internet
The partial allocation underscores the vulnerability of SNAP during prolonged funding lapses. While contingency assets can sustain the program briefly, USDA data indicate that the reserve was never designed to shoulder a multi-month shutdown. The program, formerly known as food stamps, aided more than 40 million people in the most recent fiscal year, according to USDA statistics.
The legal dispute is unfolding as Congress remains at an impasse over broader appropriations. Lawmakers have not approved a continuing resolution or full-year spending bills, leaving several federal agencies, including USDA, without new funding authority. Negotiations have stalled over disagreements on domestic spending levels and border security priorities proposed by the White House.
Until Congress acts, the court’s directive and Monday’s emergency transfer will serve as a temporary stop-gap. If additional resources are not identified, funding for SNAP in December and beyond remains uncertain. The USDA has not yet detailed how it would manage benefits after the contingency fund is exhausted, nor whether it might reconsider the use of Section 32 revenue if the shutdown persists.
The judge in Rhode Island has scheduled a status conference for later this week to review compliance with the order and to determine whether further court intervention is necessary. Meanwhile, state agencies are preparing to implement the reduced November payment schedule as soon as technical adjustments are completed, according to Penn’s declaration.
Crédito da imagem: Samuel Corum/Getty Images
