In a late-night memorandum issued Saturday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture directed states to “immediately undo” full SNAP payments already distributed to recipients.
The Trump administration is demanding states reverse food stamp payments already provided to low-income families, intensifying confusion surrounding the nation’s largest anti-hunger programme during the ongoing government shutdown.
In the Saturday evening directive, the U.S. Department of Agriculture ordered states to “immediately undo” full Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits distributed last week, characterising the payments as “unauthorised.” The order threatens to hold states financially liable if they fail to comply.
Washington state has already distributed full benefits to approximately 250,000 households, representing roughly 500,000 people who rely on SNAP for monthly groceries.
Shannon Niesen, a Tacoma SNAP recipient who receives $240 monthly for groceries, stated she and her acquaintances felt relieved when benefits finally arrived last week after days of uncertainty.
“A friend of mine had called and said, check your snap benefit balance. And so I did, and they were there. And yeah, we were all excited,” Niesen explained.
She indicated the $240 she receives typically sustains her through the entire month.
However, those benefits, and potentially hundreds of thousands more across the state, are now in jeopardy. Several people interviewed stated they have already spent some or all of the funds on groceries.
“It sends a message that the Trump administration does not care about people,” Niesen said. “I mean, people have to eat.”
The confusion stems from the government shutdown, now in its 40th day, the longest in U.S. history. The Trump administration has declined to fully fund SNAP during the shutdown, leaving 42 million Americans nationwide without their November benefits.
Last week, a federal judge ordered the administration to restore full funding, prompting states like Washington, New York and Wisconsin to expedite payments to families. Subsequently, the Supreme Court temporarily paused that order, leaving the entire programme in legal uncertainty whilst an appeals court reviews the case.
The USDA’s Saturday memorandum escalated the situation, warning states they could lose access to federal administrative funds and be held liable for “overissuances that result from noncompliance.”
Senator Patty Murray wrote on social media: “This president will stop at nothing to take food out of the mouths of hungry kids across America. Soulless.”
Congresswoman Suzan DelBene echoed her sentiment on social media: “Unbelievable. For Trump, the cruelty is the point. Instead of helping struggling families, the administration is trying to inflict maximum pain. House Republicans need to come back to work and the negotiating table so we can get a bipartisan deal that puts working families first.”
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has already refused to comply with the federal order, stating his state will continue fighting “against the Trump administration’s efforts to yank food assistance away from Wisconsin’s kids, families and seniors.”
Governor Bob Ferguson’s office did not indicate whether Washington would comply with this new directive.
However, in a brief statement, a spokesperson stated, “Everyone who receives SNAP benefits should check the status of their cards. If there are funds available, people can use them.”
For recipients like Niesen, the uncertainty arrives at a particularly difficult time.
“Thanksgiving’s coming up, Christmas is coming up,” she said. “How are they going to put food on the table?”
The directive to reverse already-distributed benefits creates unprecedented administrative and practical challenges. Once SNAP funds are loaded onto Electronic Benefit Transfer cards, recipients can immediately begin purchasing groceries. Many households, particularly those experiencing food insecurity, use benefits promptly upon receipt to address immediate nutritional needs.
The concept of “undoing” payments that recipients have already spent raises complex questions. Unlike reversible electronic transactions between financial institutions, SNAP benefits converted to groceries cannot be recovered. The food has been consumed, the money has transferred to retailers, and families have structured their meal planning around the expectation of available benefits.
States face a dilemma in responding to the federal directive. Compliance would require technical systems capable of reversing EBT transactions, assuming such reversals are even possible for funds already spent. Non-compliance risks federal retaliation including loss of administrative funding that states need to operate SNAP programmes.
The financial liability threat mentioned in the USDA memo suggests the federal government might seek reimbursement from states for benefits it now characterises as unauthorised. State budgets typically do not include contingencies for assuming federal SNAP benefit costs, which run into hundreds of millions of dollars monthly.
Washington’s 250,000 affected households represent a substantial population whose food security hangs in the balance. The 500,000 individuals relying on these benefits include children, elderly residents, people with disabilities, and working families whose wages fall below thresholds qualifying them for assistance.
Shannon Niesen’s $240 monthly benefit represents the careful calculations that SNAP recipients make to stretch limited resources across 30 days. Her comment that this amount “usually gets her through the entire month” reflects the reality that many recipients exhaust benefits before month’s end, particularly in high-cost areas like Tacoma.
The relief Niesen and her peers expressed upon receiving benefits underscores the anxiety that shutdown-related payment delays created. SNAP recipients typically receive benefits on predictable schedules, allowing them to budget and plan meals. Uncertainty about whether and when benefits would arrive disrupted these essential planning processes.
The statement from recipients that they have already spent benefits highlights the impossibility of the administration’s demand. Food purchased and consumed cannot be returned. Grocers who accepted SNAP payments and remitted those funds through normal channels cannot reverse completed transactions days or weeks after the fact.
The timing, with Thanksgiving and Christmas approaching, adds emotional weight to an already dire situation. Holiday meals carry cultural and familial significance, and many families save portions of monthly food budgets for special holiday purchases. The threat of benefit reversal during this period compounds financial and psychological stress.
The 40-day shutdown duration, noted as the longest in U.S. history, provides context for the chaos surrounding SNAP. Extended shutdowns strain the contingency measures and workarounds that might sustain programmes through brief funding lapses. As shutdowns extend, accumulated problems compound and temporary solutions prove inadequate.
The 42 million Americans nationwide relying on SNAP dwarf Washington’s affected population, indicating the national scale of potential disruption. Benefits support roughly one in eight Americans, making SNAP among the nation’s most significant safety net programmes.
