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Attorney General Raúl Torrez Demands Answers from Trump Administration on SNAP Funding Due to Lapse at End of Month

• October 24, 2025

Albuquerque, N.M. – Attorney General Ra úl Torrez, alongside a coalition of 23 attorneys general, sent a letter today to the secretary of the USDA Brooke Rollins demanding clarity and additional information on how the USDA plans to proceed after alerting states that funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) may lapse in the near future because of the ongoing federal government shutdown. The letter also detailed the grave harm that will be caused to children, seniors and veterans who rely on food assistance for their daily meals.

Nearly 40 percent of SNAP recipients nationwide in FY 2023 were children ages 0-17, and adults ages 60 and older made up another 20 percent.

“Approximately 450,000 New Mexicans rely on these SNAP benefits to feed their families,” said Attorney General Raúl Torrez. “Congress has already appropriated these funds, and several states have contingency funding in place to fill gaps caused by unforeseen interruptions. It is irresponsible to direct states to withhold this contingency funding, a decision which, if upheld, will devastate and cause irreparable harm to families. My office will do everything in its power to ensure these funds continue to be distributed and keep meals on the table for New Mexicans.”

On October 10, 2025, the USDA issued a letter to all state agencies and state agency directors that administer the SNAP program indicating that “if the current lapse in appropriations continues, there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits for approximately 42 million individuals across the Nation.” It also “direct[ed] States to hold their November issuance files and delay transmission to State EBT vendors until further notice,” including “on-going SNAP benefits and daily files.”

This letter indicated, without citing any legal authority, or providing any reasoning, the USDA is prohibiting states from sending already-calculated November allotments to EBT vendors for processing.

The USDA appears to have at least $6 billion in SNAP contingency reserve funds that Congress appropriated for emergency situations like this. The attorneys general argue the federal government should use those funds to continue providing SNAP benefits rather than direct states to suspend already-calculated allotments. Furthermore, the USDA also has access to Section 32 funds that could also be used to provide SNAP benefits during the ongoing shutdown.

While the USDA does have some authority to reduce SNAP benefits, or even suspend or cancel them under certain circumstances, the USDA’s October 10 letter does not indicate that any of the legal requirements to do so have been met.

The attorneys general argue that, if carried out, this directive could cause significant hardship for the 42 million Americans who depend on SNAP to feed themselves and their families. Even a temporary delay will have devastating effects on the American public and the national economy.

The letter sent by the attorneys general asks the USDA to answer the following critical questions by October 27, 2025:

• Does USDA/FNS have contingency funds left over from prior Congressional appropriations?  If so, what is the total of those contingency funds?
• Does USDA/FNS have access to any other sources of available funds to pay benefits and administrative costs associated with issuing those benefits?
• Does USDA/FNS intend to use such funds to furnish SNAP benefits, even at a reduced level?  If not, why not?  And if so, how does the agency intend to execute that plan, and when would States be expected to send their benefit issuance files?
• Assuming USDA/FNS has contingency funds, on what grounds did the agency direct States to “hold” November files, rather than reducing allotments consistent with available funds?
• Should States treat the October 10 letter as a “suspension” of benefits or a “cancellation” of benefits under 7 C.F.R. § 271.7, or neither? AG Letter to USDA re SNAP Benefits Lapse

New Mexico joined in sending this letter with the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.

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