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Twenty-five states and Washington, D.C., sued the Trump administration to block an interruption of SNAP benefits beginning Nov. 1, after officials refused to use emergency reserves during the shutdown. The states asked a federal judge in Massachusetts to order the use of $5–$6 billion in contingency funds, enough for at least partial payments to roughly 42 million people. The Agriculture Department now says the reserves aren’t legally available, and warned states against self-funding, while its website blamed Democrats. The White House and USDA did not immediately comment.

Prepared by Lauren Mitchell and reviewed by editorial team.