The Supreme Court late on Friday issued a temporary administrative stay on lower court orders that would have required the government to fully fund SNAP payments for the month of November.
Under the Supreme Court's order, full payouts will remain paused while an appeal of the initial order plays out in the First Circuit Court of Appeals.
"IT IS ORDERED that the District Court’s orders are hereby administratively stayed pending disposition of the motion for a stay pending appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit," the Friday night order read.
The Supreme Court's stay will remain in place for two days after the appeals court issues its ruling.
The Trump administration appealed the case to the Supreme Court earlier on Friday.
The new order is the latest in a back-and-forth case between the Trump administration and the courts, which escalated this week when a federal judge in Rhode Island ordered the administration to restore full SNAP benefits, calling an earlier plan to distribute only partial payments “arbitrary and capricious.”
The administration quickly appealed, but said it was taking steps to comply while the case moves forward.
That appeals court on Friday declined to grant a fast administrative stay on distributing funds as requested by the Trump administration. It says it will continue to review the full stay pending appeal.
"We intend to issue a decision on that motion as quickly as possible," the court wrote.
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Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said it is moving to fully fund November SNAP benefits.
In a letter to state agencies, officials said they are completing the steps needed to make the funds available, and states will soon be able to send full benefit files to EBT processors, which load SNAP money onto benefit cards.
At least nine states have begun issuing full SNAP benefits for the month based on payments sent from USDA.
SNAP funding lapsed due to the government shutdown, which has now stretched on for more than a month.
States and nonprofits sued to require the federal government to use contingency funds to make sure SNAP funds are paid out. The administration initially argued that contingency funds were not enough to cover all SNAP benefits. But the judge ruled the government must use all legally available reserve funds within USDA to ensure that full payments go out.
