As a federal government shutdown entered its fourth week in October 2025, nearly half of US states joined forces to sue the Trump administration over its decision to cut off funding for food stamps. The lawsuit, filed by a coalition of Democrat-led states against the USDA and Secretary Brooke Rollins, targeted the indefinite suspension of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for the country's 42 million enrolled individuals – approximately 12% of the US population.
The move comes as Congress failed to reach a funding agreement, prompting the USDA to formally decide on November 1 that SNAP benefits would not be issued. However, the agency has set aside a $6 billion contingency fund, which it claims will not be used to pay for benefits due to lack of Congressional approval prior to the shutdown.
The states suing the USDA argue that withholding funding violates the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the federal law governing how federal agencies develop and issue regulations. In response, some states like California, Minnesota, and New York have taken it upon themselves to provide emergency funding to ensure continued benefits for their residents without disruption.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta expressed outrage at the Trump administration's decision, calling it "playing politics with this essential safety net." He pointed out that 5.5 million Californians rely on SNAP benefits, making it a critical lifeline for vulnerable populations.
The USDA countered by placing blame squarely on Democrats, stating that they are choosing to hold out for their own ideological interests rather than reopen the government and allow timely distribution of vital WIC and SNAP allotments to those in need – including mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among them.
The move comes as Congress failed to reach a funding agreement, prompting the USDA to formally decide on November 1 that SNAP benefits would not be issued. However, the agency has set aside a $6 billion contingency fund, which it claims will not be used to pay for benefits due to lack of Congressional approval prior to the shutdown.
The states suing the USDA argue that withholding funding violates the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the federal law governing how federal agencies develop and issue regulations. In response, some states like California, Minnesota, and New York have taken it upon themselves to provide emergency funding to ensure continued benefits for their residents without disruption.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta expressed outrage at the Trump administration's decision, calling it "playing politics with this essential safety net." He pointed out that 5.5 million Californians rely on SNAP benefits, making it a critical lifeline for vulnerable populations.
The USDA countered by placing blame squarely on Democrats, stating that they are choosing to hold out for their own ideological interests rather than reopen the government and allow timely distribution of vital WIC and SNAP allotments to those in need – including mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among them.
. The fact that the Trump administration is essentially holding up food stamps for millions of people just because they can't agree on a budget is, like, completely unacceptable. I mean, who exactly are these politicians thinking about here? 5.5 million Californians rely on SNAP benefits, and it's a critical lifeline for vulnerable populations - shouldn't we be trying to support them instead of playing politics with our food assistance programs?
. I'm not convinced they wouldn't use that money to pay for benefits if Congress got back into session. It's just so much easier to blame Democrats for this mess and pretend like it's all their fault 
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California is leading the way here, by the way - 5.5 million people can't afford to go without their SNAP benefits? No excuse, period.
. what's really going on here? 
the thought of 42 million people having their benefits cut off is insane, especially for those who rely on it the most. i feel so bad for california, ny and minnesota for stepping up to provide emergency funding, though that's not fair to the rest of us who aren't in a position to do the same.
? California is literally doing what should've been done by Trump's admin - providing emergency funding for SNAP benefits so no one goes hungry during this mess 
. It's not like the US population has access to other forms of assistance or anything... meanwhile, the USDA is just sitting on a $6 billion contingency fund and expecting people to be okay with that? 
sounds like some kinda budgeting magic 
it's not right that states have to take matters into their own hands to keep people fed. i feel for california and minnesota and ny tho, they're stepping in to help where the fed gov't won't 
but at the same time, it's all just a big mess cuz of politics 
what even is an administrative procedure act tho? sounds like some jargon lol. can we just get this gov't shutdown resolved already?! 
like california has 5.5 million people on snap benefits and thats a lot of fams struggling to put food on the table lol how can politics possibly be more important than that 
california alone has 5.5 million people relying on snap benefits and now the trmp admin is trying to take it away from them?? 
that's just cruel and heartless... i'm so sick of politics being played with our most vulnerable citizens' lives 
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. And let's not forget, WIC & SNAP are actually programs created by Democrats back in the day 
. It seems like everyone's playing blame game instead of working together to find a solution... when will we get tired of this back-and-forth? 
. And California's all "nope, we're good" and starts sending out their own emergency funding 
. And now, the states that are actually doing something are getting roasted by the Trump folks for being all "hey, we've got this"... meanwhile, people are losing their benefits