"Two weeks ago, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that the ongoing government shutdown was " starting to cut into muscle." Now it appears to be nearing the bone: For the first time in its 61-year history, SNAP, the federal food-assistance program for low- and no-income people, is set to run out of money. If November's payments don't arrive in people's accounts on Saturday, roughly 42 million Americans will need to figure out another way to pay for their meals."
"On Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which oversees SNAP, announced in a memo that it would not tap into the roughly $6 billion contingency funding set aside for the program. According to the memo, the reserve is "not legally available to cover regular benefits," and "the best way for SNAP to continue is for the shutdown to end." A coalition of 25 Democrat-led states and the District of Columbia is suing the Trump administration, alleging that not only is the administration able to use those funds-it must use them."
"The timing of the USDA's mandate is questionable. Congress set aside that $6 billion for SNAP over the past year and a half. And earlier this month, the agency had a 55-page memo on its website detailing how it might use the reserve for SNAP in the event that funding lapsed, per requirements set by the White House's Office of Management and Budget."
SNAP faces an unprecedented funding shortfall and is set to run out of money for the first time since the program began, threatening November payments for roughly 42 million Americans if funds do not arrive. The USDA announced it would not draw on a roughly $6 billion contingency reserve, stating the reserve is "not legally available to cover regular benefits" and that ending the shutdown is the solution. A coalition of 25 Democratic-led states and D.C. is suing to force use of the reserve. Congress had appropriated the $6 billion over the past year and a half, and the USDA previously published a 55-page memo outlining potential reserve use.
Read at The Atlantic
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