By Aliss Higham
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Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits have finally been restored after several weeks of late and partial payments caused by the federal government shutdown.
Why It Matters
President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a funding bill that officially ends the nation’s longest government shutdown, allowing SNAP to resume issuing payments. The president approved the long-delayed measure just hours after the House passed it in a 222–209 vote following the Senate’s approval earlier in the week.
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For weeks, millions of SNAP-reliant households had been stuck in uncertainty as the 43-day shutdown froze funding and sowed confusion across the country. The program, which provides food assistance to roughly 42 million low- and no-income Americans every month, has been mired in legal battles ever since the administration said November benefits would not be issued due to the lapse in federal funding in October. That announcement triggered several lawsuits, leading to conflicting court rulings, including from the Supreme Court, over whether benefits could be paid prior to the government reopening.
What To Know
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which oversees SNAP, has now instructed all state agencies to "take immediate steps" to distribute full benefit payments. A spokesperson confirmed to Newsweek that funding for the program would be issued within 24 hours of the bill's signing.
As SNAP is paid for by the federal government but issued at the state and local level, recipients have experienced wildly different outcomes. Some states paid full benefits, others sent partial payments, and some issued no benefits at all. With the government now open, states are working to issue benefit top ups to those that have only received partial payments, and full benefits to those who have not received any at all.
Not all states have issued exact dates for when benefits will be uploaded to electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards, but Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said this week that benefits should be issued "hopefully by the end of this week" and "at the very latest on Monday."
Some states issued full benefits prior to the government reopening, despite the myriad of legal rulings in the case against the federal government last week. These were paid by states, and the money sent by the USDA will be used to pay back the states.
What People Are Saying
Vermont Governor Phil Scott said in a statement in a Thursday press release: “The federal government reopening and resuming SNAP benefits is good news for Vermont. There are over 63,000 Vermonters who rely on these benefits and I’m appreciative of the work of Congress to make this possible. I also want to thank legislative leaders for working with my team to issue temporary contingency benefits in the absence of federal funds earlier this month.”
Washington Governor Bob Ferguson wrote on X on Monday: "It is breathtaking that the Trump Administration has fought so hard to keep food from hungry families. However, here in Washington state, we've caught up on the SNAP benefits that were delayed due to the shutdown. We're now delivering full benefits. People here receive their benefits on the same date each month, between the 1st and the 20th. So far, we have delivered nearly $115 million, which is where we should be for this point in the month. We have approximately $48.5 million to send out between tomorrow and November 20th. The situation remains fluid, but our plan is to stay on schedule from here on out. People who receive SNAP benefits should check their cards. If there are funds available, they should use their cards as they normally would. I'm grateful for the quick work and dedication of our team."
What Happens Next?
SNAP benefits for December are expected to go out as scheduled. The newly passed funding bill will keep the program operating through the end of the fiscal year, on October 1, 2026.
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