US: People in some states get SNAP food aid while others still wait for their November benefits

People in some US states will be able to buy groceries with federally funded SNAP benefits Saturday while those in other states were still waiting for November food benefits that had been delayed by a protracted legal battle over the federal government shutdown.

The Trump administration initially said last month that it would not fund Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for November because of the US government shutdown. The twists and turns since have exacerbated uncertainty for the nearly one in eight Americans who receive monthly SNAP benefits to spend at grocery stores and farmer's markets. On Friday, some states began issuing full monthly SNAP benefits to people, a day after a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to provide the funds. But Friday night, Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson temporarily paused that judicial order to allow time for an appeals court to decide whether to issue a more lasting halt. Jackson acted because she handles emergency matters from Massachusetts.

The high court's order didn't stop payment distribution in at least some states, but millions of other Americans who depend on SNAP are still in limbo.

How are SNAP recipients faring? Nearly 42 million Americans receive SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps, for help buying groceries. Most have incomes below the poverty line, which is about USD 32,000 for a family of four.

An individual can receive a monthly maximum food benefit of nearly USD 300 and a family of four up to nearly USD 1,000, although many receive less than that under a formula that takes into consideration their income.

The delay in payments has led to a surge in demand at food banks and pantries across the country, as well as long lines for free meals or drive-thru giveaways.

Some states have provided emergency funding to food banks to help them respond to the increased need. Some states also used their own dollars to fund direct payments to people while the federal benefits were in limbo.

Over the weekend, some SNAP recipients took to social media to ask for advice on how to stretch their benefits, with some reporting they received far more than they are owed and others getting just a few dollars.

North Carolina's Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangvai acknowledged that more than 190,000 households there received just USD 16 or less, after the state paused the full payment of benefits following the Supreme Court's order.

Where have people already received benefits? Whether SNAP beneficiaries see money on their electronic benefits transfer cards depends on where they live. In Hawaii, Oregon and Wisconsin, officials worked quickly after a judge ordered full benefit payments Thursday to instruct their EBT providers to process the full payments. “We moved with haste once we verified everything,” Joseph Campos II, deputy director of Hawaii's Department of Human Services, told The Associated Press.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, said state employees “worked through the night” to issue full November benefits “to make sure every Oregon family relying on SNAP could buy groceries” over the weekend. Officials in California, Kansas, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington also confirmed that some SNAP recipients were issued their full November payments on Friday. Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, a Democrat, said more than 250,00 households that missed their regular monthly SNAP payment during the first week of November received their full amount on Friday. The remaining beneficiaries would receive their November funds on their regularly scheduled dates later this month — if distribution does not remain blocked by legal challenges.

Officials in Colorado confirmed Saturday that about 32,000 recipients there had received their full monthly benefits before the Supreme Court's order came down. More than 560,000 additional recipients are still waiting.

Massachusetts Democratic Gov. Maura Healey said half a million recipients in her state also got their benefits, after a previously scheduled payment went out Saturday morning. A half a million more residents there are supposed to get their benefits next week.

In Rhode Island, about 79,000 households received their full benefits, Democratic Gov. Dan McKee said, adding that his team is “working through the weekend'' to help address what he described as a crisis.

“The President has intentionally created chaos for states across the country — playing games with people's ability to feed their families, weaponizing hunger, and gaslighting the American people. It's inhumane,” McKee said.

The Trump administration said in a legal filing with the Supreme Court that “there is no ready mechanism for the government to recover those funds” that already have been distributed.