The Trump administration is ordering US states to stop paying full food aid benefits to low-income American families, saying they are “unauthorised”.
The memo from the USDA, which administers the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap), said states can only provide 65% of the benefits after the Supreme Court allowed the administration to withhold some funding pending further legal hearings.
More than 42 million Americans who rely on food assistance began receiving only partial benefits this month due to the ongoing U.S. government shutdown.
Some states used their own reserve coffers to replenish benefits for recipients.
“States should immediately reverse any steps taken to provide full SNAP benefits in November 2025,” the USDA said in a Saturday memo.
It's the administration's latest move in the fight to fund Snap, also known as food stamps, as the longest government shutdown in U.S. history drags on.
Snap is used by around one in eight Americans and costs almost $9bn (£6.9bn) a month.
The legal saga comes after the USDA announced it would stop paying benefits in November due to funding shortfalls as the economy shut down.
The White House appealed to the nation's highest court after a lower court ruled that Snap benefits should be paid out to recipients in full.
On Friday, the Supreme Court issued an emergency ruling temporarily allowing the Trump administration to temporarily withhold $4bn (£3.04bn) in benefits funding.
