According to the NPR piece, states have been told by the Trump administration to cancel their plans to provide full SNAP (food stamp) payments starting in November 2025. This ruling followed a federal judge's temporary order that the government make full payments in spite of the ongoing closure. States were informed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which is in charge of the SNAP program, that it was illegal to pay the entire amount without legislative approval. States were therefore instructed to "undo" whatever actions they had made to provide full benefits, even if they had started doing so.
Millions of low-income Americans who depend on SNAP to purchase food as well as state agencies have experienced significant confusion and anxiety as a result of this action. Following the judge's judgment, some states had already began providing full benefits however, the federal government instructed them to halt or reverse such payments. Opponents claim this move will hurt families who are struggling to put food on the table, while the government claims it is legally unable to continue funding the entire program during a shutdown. The article's major thesis is that vulnerable individuals are suffering as a result of the federal government's decision to halt full SNAP payments during the shutdown, and there is conflict between federal and state authorities on how to react.
