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Attorney General Raúl Torrez Sues Trump Administration for Illegally Suspending SNAP Benefits

• October 28, 2025

Albuquerque, N.M. – Attorney General Raúl Torrez, alongside a coalition of 23 attorneys general and three governors, filed a lawsuit today against the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and its Secretary Brooke Rollins for unlawfully suspending the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which helps more than 40 million Americans buy food, due to the ongoing federal government shutdown.

“More than 450,000 New Mexicans rely on SNAP to feed their families, and I will not stand by and watch our people go hungry when Congress has already appropriated billions of dollars in emergency funding to keep food on their tables,” said Attorney General Raúl Torrez. “At a time when too many are struggling with rising costs, we should be expanding access to food assistance — not undermining it.”

On October 1, 2025, the new federal fiscal year began without an appropriation by Congress to fund the federal government, creating a “government shutdown.” On October 10, the USDA sent a letter to state SNAP agencies saying that if the shutdown continues, there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits for the approximately 42 million individuals across the country that rely on them.

Despite the USDA’s claim of insufficient funds, the agency has access to billions of dollars in SNAP-specific contingency funds appropriated by Congress for this very purpose. Furthermore, the USDA has funded other programs with emergency funds during this shutdown, but has refused to fund SNAP, leaving millions of Americans – and approximately 450,000 New Mexicans – without the assistance they need to buy food. It is clear the federal government is making a deliberate, illegal and inhumane choice not to fund the crucial SNAP program.

The lapse in benefits will have dire consequences for the health and well-being of millions across the country, who rely on the program to feed themselves and their families. This lapse will also put unnecessary strain on state and local governments and community organizations, as families increasingly rely on emergency services and local food pantries that are already struggling to fill a growing nutrition gap. It will affect our school systems and college and university communities, where food insecurity will stand in the way of educating our students. Suspending SNAP benefits will also harm the hundreds of thousands of grocers and merchants that accept SNAP payment for food purchases across the country. USDA has estimated that in a slowing economy, every $1 in SNAP benefits generates $1.54 in economic activity.

While the federal government funds and sets the monthly amount of SNAP benefits, states are responsible for administering programs in their state. Suspending SNAP benefits in this manner is both contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act. Where Congress has clearly spoken, providing that SNAP benefits should continue even during a government shutdown, USDA does not have the authority to say otherwise. The coalition has also filed a temporary restraining order asking the court to immediately turn benefits back on.

A copy of the lawsuit can be found here: Mass v. USDA et al.

Additionally, New Mexico joined in sending a letter to Secretary Rollins last week which demanded clarity and additional information regarding the USDA’s plans to proceed with SNAP benefits. More information and the letter can be found here.

Joining New Mexico in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai‘i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. The Governors of Kansas, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania have also joined.

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