Kansas governor, other democrats sue Trump over SNAP benefit funding

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly joined a coalition of 22 attorneys general and two governors in filing a lawsuit against the USDA and Secretary Brooke Rollins for “unlawfully suspending” the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) due to the ongoing federal government shutdown.

“States cannot, and should not, take on the federal government’s responsibility to fund SNAP,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Cutting off SNAP payments is an unprecedented choice made by the Trump Administration and Congress that will harm millions of families across the country. I joined this lawsuit to protect Kansans, because the federal government has a legal and moral responsibility to fund this program, not to take food out of the mouths of Kansas children.”

She says that despite USDA’s claim of insufficient funds, the agency has access to billions of dollars in SNAP-specific contingency funds appropriated by Congress for this purpose.

The Hill reports that experts say currently has between $5 billion and $6 billion. It wouldn’t be enough to fully cover the November benefits, which are estimated at roughly $8 billion, but the states stressed it could cover “at least a significant portion.”

In a memo, the USDA said spending the contingency fund during a government shutdown is illegal because it was designed to respond to natural disasters and other unforeseen events. The memo contradicts the shutdown plan prepared by the USDA earlier in the year.