People in some states get SNAP food aid while others still wait for their November benefits

People in some U.S. States testament be able-bodied to purchase groceries with federally funded SN benefits sat spell those in other states were still waiting for November food benefits that had been delayed by a protracted legal battle over the federal government shutdown.

The Trump administration initially said last month that it would not fund Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for November because of the U.S. Government shutdown. The twists and turns since have exacerbated uncertainty for the nearly 1 in 8 Americans who receive monthly SN benefits to spend at grocery stores and farmer’s markets.

On Friday, some states began issuing full monthly SN benefits to people, a day after a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to provide the funds.

But Friday night, Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson temporarily paused that judicial order to allow time for an appeals court to decide whether to issue a more lasting halt. Jackson acted because she handles emergency matters from Massachusetts.

The high court's order didn't stop payment distribution in at least some states, where hundreds of thousands of recipients are now able to buy food for their families. But millions more Americans who depend on SN are still in limbo.

Nearly 42 million Americans receive SN benefits, formerly known as food stamps, for help buying groceries. Most have incomes below the poverty line, which is about $32,000 for a family of four.

An individual can receive a monthly maximum food benefit of nearly $300 and a family of four up to nearly $1,000, although many receive less than that under a formula that takes into consideration their income.

The delay in payments has led to a surge in demand at food banks and pantries across the country, as well as long lines for free meals or drive-thru giveaways.

Some states have provided emergency funding to food banks to help them respond to the increased need. Some states also used their own dollars to fund direct payments to people while the federal benefits were in limbo.

Whether SN beneficiaries see money on their electronic benefits transfer cards depends on where they live.

In Hawaii, Oregon and Wisconsin, officials worked quickly after a judge ordered full benefit payments Thursday to instruct their EBT providers to process the full payments.

“We moved with haste once we verified everything,” Joseph Campos II, deputy director of Hawaii’s Department of Human Services, told The Associated Press.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, said state employees “worked through the night” to issue full November benefits “to make sure every Oregon family relying on SN could buy groceries” over the weekend.

Officials in California, Kansas, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington also confirmed that some SN recipients were issued their full November payments on Friday.

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, a Democrat, said more than 250,00 households that missed their regular monthly SN payment during the first week of November received their full amount on Friday. The remaining beneficiaries would receive their November funds on their regularly scheduled dates later this month — if distribution does not remain blocked by legal challenges.

Officials in Colorado confirmed Saturday that about 32,000 recipients there had received their full monthly benefits before the Supreme Court's order came down. More than 560,000 additional recipients are still waiting, as the state is “evaluating how best to proceed.”

Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis said he was “baffled” by the Trump administration's efforts to continue blocking the food aid, with the prolonged back-and-forth legal fight “creating chaos among states.”

“Costs keep going up for everyone, and we hope either the American justice system works quickly to allow us to get funds out to hungry Coloradans as soon as possible, or the Trump administration drops its appeal,” Polis said.

Massachusetts Democratic Gov. Maura Healey said half a million recipients in her state also got their benefits, after a previously scheduled payment went out Saturday morning. A half a million more residents there are supposed to get their benefits next week, though the ongoing legal fight could change that situation.

The Trump administration said in a legal filing with the Supreme Court that “there is no ready mechanism for the government to recover those funds” that already have been distributed.

Before Jackson ordered a pause, New York had said access to full SN benefits should begin by Sunday. New Hampshire had said full benefits should be available over the weekend. Inquiries to those states were not immediately returned Saturday.

And Arizona, Connecticut and Minnesota all had said that full SN benefits should be accessible in the coming days.

Whether people actually will receive those benefits on their EBT cards remains unclear.

For people in some other states, the wait appears likely to extend into next week. Numerous state officials said they had been waiting for further guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers SN.

Because of the federal government shutdown, the Trump administration originally had said SN benefits would not be available in November. After two judges ruled the administration could not skip November’s benefits entirely, the administration said it would use an emergency reserve fund containing more than $4.6 billion to provide partial benefits in November.

A judge on Thursday said that wasn’t good enough, and ordered other funds to be used to make the full monthly payment. The Trump administration appealed, asking a higher court to suspend any orders that require it to spend more money than is available in the contingency fund. That is what led to Jackson's temporary hold issued late Friday.

Associated Press reporters from across the U.S. Contributed to this report.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.

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