Overview
- A late Wednesday court filing from USDA official Patrick Penn raised planned November SNAP allotments to a maximum of 65% of normal benefits, with the Justice Department calling the earlier 50% estimate an error.
- Two federal judges in Rhode Island and Massachusetts ordered the administration to use SNAP contingency funds after benefits lapsed on Nov. 1 during the record-length shutdown.
- Rollout timing remains uncertain and will vary by state, with Louisiana preparing to load cards as soon as Friday, North Carolina and Connecticut targeting next week, and others warning of significant reprogramming delays.
- USDA has warned of procedural difficulties in legacy systems, and the reduction formula means many households will face cuts deeper than 35% with analyst estimates that over a million households could receive no November benefits.
- Local stopgaps are expanding — including Philadelphia’s One Philly fund and increased food-bank distributions on Long Island and in Houston — yet officials and providers say these measures cannot substitute for full federal benefits.