‘Dollars are beginning to flow again’: Pennsylvanians owed SNAP payments this week should see money on cards by ‘midnight’

Pennsylvanians who were supposed to get SNAP benefits this week, but didn’t because of the federal government shutdown and funding freezes, should see money on their cards by tonight or in the coming days, state officials said.

About $100 million in benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP, are being delivered to some of the 2 million Pennsylvanians in the program after a judge in Rhode Island ordered the Trump administration to issue full benefit payments starting this week.

The Trump administration has already filed an appeal, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture has told states it is working to comply with U.S. District Judge John McConnell’s order.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said the state Department of Human Services moved to immediately pull in federal program dollars in the last 24 hours and get them to participants who never received their benefits on or after Nov. 1.

“So, if you were one of those people that had a zero on your SNAP card cause you were supposed to get your benefits on the first of the month, go check it out,” Shapiro said Friday in Philadelphia. “Those dollars are flowing.”

Pennsylvanians can check their SNAP balances online or through a phone app.

State officials hope that most people will see the full amount of November benefits reflected on their cards by “midnight,” Shapiro said.

The payments only apply to some of the 2 million state residents in the anti-hunger safety net program, as participants get SNAP benefits on different dates throughout the month, depending on when they initially enrolled.

Pennsylvania normally gets $366 million in SNAP payments every month for all participants.

The future of benefits for people who typically get their benefits later in the month remains unclear. The Trump administration in its appeal could ask the court to stop additional payments while the case plays out.

“My appeal to the Trump administration is, just do the right thing. Give up. You’re going to lose again in court,” Shapiro said during a visit to Share Food Program, a hunger relief organization in Philadelphia. “And the only thing you’re fighting for – think about this – the only thing you’re fighting for is to make Americans hungry. I don’t know why you would want to do that.”

Shapiro said his legal team is working with other states and organizations who have sued the Trump administration to ensure that the federal government uses emergency and contingency funding in order to keep SNAP afloat during the shutdown.