Last Updated: 11/5/25
Message frame: As we enter the second month of the shutdown, Congressional Republicans are putting food assistance at further risk for families who rely on it. Earlier this year, Republicans made massive cuts to SNAP to fund tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy. Now, Trump and Republicans are refusing to fully fund SNAP, lower health care costs, and reopen the government. It’s time for Republicans in Congress to stop cutting food assistance, permanently extend health care tax credits, and end the government shutdown.
Background: Beginning November 1, funding for SNAP benefits ran out because the federal government remained shut down, and millions of families across the country do not currently have access to the food assistance they rely on. The Trump administration could have prevented this scenario and kept SNAP benefits going, but they resisted using a contingency fund that exists for this specific purpose.
What’s happening now? After federal judges forced the Trump administration to use that SNAP contingency fund, the administration said it would use that funding to give partial benefits to SNAP recipients for the month of November. The judge gave the administration the option to use additional funds to fully fund November SNAP benefits, but the administration declined to do so. Because it is more complicated to deliver partial benefits rather than full benefits, November’s benefits will be even further delayed by days or weeks if the shutdown continues, and the timing may vary state by state. That means, as of November 5th, SNAP recipients have not received any benefits for the month of November unless their state otherwise covered their benefits- and some recipients may never receive any of their benefits this month.
On Tuesday, Trump posted on Truth Social suggesting that he would not fund SNAP benefits at all until the government shutdown ends, in contrast to what USDA told the federal judges. Later on Tuesday, the White House press secretary said that the administration would comply with the judge’s ruling and fund the partial benefits.
Are there other paths to fully fund SNAP benefits even if the government remains shut down? Yes, but none are likely to fully rectify the situation everywhere in the short term:
- Some state governments are taking action to help people who have lost benefits. These stories have helpful information on states’ efforts to fill in this gap:
- Members of Congress from both parties have introduced legislation to keep SNAP benefits funded, but Republican House and Senate leadership are blocking legislative efforts to fund benefits.
- There are still lawsuits moving that seek to force the Trump administration to fully fund SNAP benefits during the shutdown.
These new threats to SNAP come on top of the massive cuts to the program that Congressional Republicans made in their tax law earlier this year (see section below). The Trump administration is currently rushing states to implement the tax law’s SNAP cuts, threatening further disruptions in people’s benefits.
State-specific information:
- Use the table below to see how many people in specific states rely on SNAP benefits (as of May).
| State | People Participating in SNAP (May 2025) |
| Arizona | 887,253 |
| Iowa | 267,158 |
| Maine | 173,259 |
| Nebraska | 150,600 |
| New Jersey | 826,094 |
| New York | 2,962,913 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,958,047 |
Helpful news stories:
- New York Times: White House Says It Will Make Some SNAP Payments After Trump Threatened to Defy Court
- Stateline: Veterans, rural residents, older adults may lose food stamps due to Trump work requirements
- NPR: ‘Uncharted territory’: Ongoing shutdown threatens food aid for 42 million people
- NBC News: SNAP recipients told to buy shelf-stable food or go to food banks as funding deadline looms
- News From The States: USDA won’t shuffle funds to extend SNAP during shutdown, in about-face from earlier plan
Additional information on the SNAP cuts in the Republican Tax Law:
The law will take away food from millions of people, hurting children, seniors, veterans and families. These cuts will make it harder for people to afford food. Around 4 million people, including 1 million children, will lose all or “a substantial amount” of their SNAP benefits due to the law. [CBPP, 8/14/25]
- Around 2.4 million people will lose SNAP entirely in an average month due to the law directly. [Congressional Budget Office, 8/11/25]
- Accounting for expected state policy changes necessitated by the federal funding cuts to SNAP, CBO estimates an additional 400,000 people will lose SNAP entirely, bringing the total to 2.7 million Americans.
- The law cuts the size of SNAP benefits for all enrollees in the future.
- By 2034, the average SNAP benefit will be $14 a month lower, equaling $168 less a year.
- The law will cut benefits by an average of $100 per month– $1,200 a year– for about 600,000 low-income households who also receive assistance paying for utility bills. An estimated 500,000 children live in these households. [CBPP, 8/14/25]
- According to Feeding America, the SNAP cuts would “eliminate 6 billion to 9 billion meals annually.” [Politico, 7/6/25]
- Specific vulnerable groups would suffer due to these SNAP cuts:
- 96,000 children in an average month will receive fewer food benefits through specific child nutrition programs, including free school meals and summer meal programs. [CBPP, 8/14/25]
- The law targets veterans’ ability to afford the food they need. The law removed a rule that exempted veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and young people aging out of foster care from work requirements, taking SNAP benefits away from over 300,000 veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and people aging out of foster care combined. [CBPP, 8/14/25; Congressional Budget Office, 8/11/25]
STATE-BY-STATE Data: Use these state fact sheets from CBPP or these state fact sheets from CAP for more information on how SNAP cuts will impact states. The data in the table below can be found in the state fact sheets.
- How to use the table below:
- 318,000 New Yorkers are at risk of losing some of their SNAP benefits
| State | Number Of People At Immediate Risk Of Losing Some SNAP Benefits |
| Arizona | 73,000 |
| Iowa | 23,000 |
| Maine | 10,000 |
| Nebraska | 9,000 |
| New Jersey | 75,000 |
| New York | 318,000 |
| Pennsylvania | 143,000 |
[Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 8/2025; CAP, 8/6/25]
Helpful resources/headlines:
- CBPP: By the Numbers: Harmful Republican Megabill Takes Food Assistance Away From Millions of People
- Urban Institute: Cuts to SNAP in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act Would Widen the Persistent Gap between Benefits and Food Costs
- Axios: Where SNAP cuts in Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” could hit Americans hardest
- Politico: Millions more Americans could turn to food banks soon. Food banks are simply not ready.
- CAP: 10 Egregious Things You May Not Know About the One Big Beautiful Bill Act
Topline Navigator Research findings:
[Survey fielded 11/1-11/3]
- Strong majorities across parties view SNAP favorably.
- The shutdown’s impact on food assistance programs is driving public concern, with many Americans saying the shutdown would impact them personally due to SNAP funding lapsing.
- Simple messages explaining that families were losing food assistance were top testing. The top two most concerning outcomes of the SNAP funding lapse were:
- 42 million Americans losing food assistance, including 16 million children
- Some families losing access to food assistance
- The effect of SNAP cuts relating to other costs were also concerning:
- Families on SNAP having to decide between paying for food and paying their rent, their electricity bills, or for their prescriptions
- Grocery stores, farmers, and the economy overall suffering without SNAP funding, and food prices going up for everyone
Overall, all messages tested around the cuts to food assistance were concerning across parties and groups. Leading with the impact on people remains the most persuasive way to discuss food assistance and any issue arising from the shutdown.