Judge asked to force Trump admin to pay full SNAP benefits

A federal judge was asked Tuesday to force the Trump administration to pay full SNAP benefits during the government shutdown; a day after the administration said it would pay only half the cost of food stamps for November.

Lawyers in the court filing said the administration’s decision to pay partial relief from the emergency fund did not comply with Judge Jack McConnell’s earlier order that the decision to make partial payments “cannot be arbitrary or capricious.”

Approximately 42 million Americans receive food stamp assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.