A federal judge in Rhode Island on Oct. 31 ordered the government to tap a $6 billion contingency fund to pay Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits .

U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell Jr. ruled after hearing arguments via a remote hearing that SNAP benefits are an entitlement guaranteed under the law. He said that U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins’ announcement that the agency lacks the money needed to cover SNAP benefits was arbitrary and capricious and violated the Administrative Procedures Act as no reasoning had been provided “legitimate or otherwise.”

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