Judge orders Trump admin to pay out full SNAP benefits

A federal judge on Thursday ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to open the purse strings and provide full SNAP benefits for the month of November amid the longest government shutdown in history.

The effects of the shutdown continue to impact the nation as benefits were cut off at month’s end for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and now major airports including the one of the world’s busiest at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport where flights were cut by 10% due to a lack of air traffic controllers on the job.

U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. ordered the administration to make the full payments by Friday, and at least the aid had been distributed in Wisconsin by overnight Thursday but the rest of the nation had not yet seen the benefits land in SNAP benefits cards distributed by states.

Officials sought to halt payments until an appeals court is able to decide on a stay order that was sought by lawyers representing the Trump administration’s position on refusing to follow the orders and distribute money to 1 in 8 Americans who rely on the program who are low income and otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford groceries.

This latest round of seeking to force the Trump administration to release the funds comes after the previously announced decision to cover only 65% of the maximum monthly amount given to individuals based on their income and household size. Several judges in federal courts across the country have ordered the administration in one form or another over the past weeks to distribute funds despite the administration claiming there isn’t enough money in the contingency fund to cover the entire month of November for the 41+ million recipients.

Per reporting from the Associated Press, there is $4.6 billion in funds in the emergency contingency fund, but additional cash could be provided from sources of emergency funds. The monthly cost of SNAP to the government is between $8 and $9 billion on average for the overall program.

The latest attempt by the administration to halt payments going out came with a filing seeking an injunction against the order handed down on Thursday, claiming the government can’t give out the funds since it violates the Constitutional separations of powers between the executive and legislative branches. Congress has control of the country’s purse strings, while the federal agencies and administrators that are granted the budgeted funds are only allowed to spend based on what has been set.

Since the government is shutdown and funding hasn’t been explicitly approved by Congress, the administration argues they are unable to tap into contingency money and distribute funds. However the courts don’t have that power to force President Trump to send out SNAP benefits as well, the injunction being sought argues.