The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has instructed states to promptly retract measures that had been taken to provide full benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), according to several reports.
States were warned that noncompliance could result in the loss of federal cost-sharing associated with SNAP. This directive was reported following its issuance on Saturday, as noted by various news sources. Additionally, states might be liable for the funds they manage.
Although the USDA oversees SNAP, it’s the states that handle the implementation.
In November, nonprofits and a Democratic attorney general initiated a lawsuit aiming to compel the Trump administration to sustain the program. Recently, they secured a ruling that would expedite payments to millions across multiple states.
However, on Friday, the Supreme Court temporarily halted an order mandating the Trump administration to allocate funds for SNAP in November. Just prior, the government was instructed to transfer about $4 billion from the Child Nutrition Program to support SNAP for the approximately 42 million individuals depending on it for food assistance.
Before the matter reached the Supreme Court, the USDA advised SNAP directors nationwide to ensure compliance and facilitate payment processing.
Some SNAP beneficiaries—roughly one in eight Americans—received their full benefits last Friday, including those in Wisconsin, as reported.
In response to the USDA’s directive issued on Saturday, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers stated on Sunday, “The answer is simply ‘No.'” He expressed concern, highlighting that Wisconsin had legally deposited food share payments onto cards following a court order. Evers criticized the Trump administration’s recent attempts to reverse these payments for about 700,000 residents, including 270,000 children, calling the situation “pathetic.” He emphasized the pressing need for the courts to clarify matters for families and businesses.
The court filing by 26 states indicated that Wisconsin faced “insufficient funds to reimburse retailers” for groceries sold to SNAP users due to the U.S. Treasury Department rejecting transactions meant to replenish the state’s SNAP EBT cards.
States cautioned that without adequate funding, vendors might go unpaid, potentially resulting in significant legal claims. The filing indicated that each state could encounter restitution claims amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars.
The USDA did not provide immediate comments in response to requests for clarification.
Other states that had extended full SNAP benefits to at least some recipients last Friday included Hawaii, Oregon, Colorado, California, Kansas, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Washington.
In a letter to state SNAP directors, USDA Under Secretary Patrick Penn noted that any complete SNAP payment files submitted for November 2025 were unauthorized, urging states to swiftly reverse any decisions made regarding full payment of SNAP benefits for that month.
