NATIONWIDE — ONE OF FRIDAY’S JUDICIAL RULINGS TO KEEP THE SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FUNDED during the government shutdown is the result of a lawsuit that New York Attorney General Letitia James filed on behalf of 25 states.

U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani of Massachusetts stated in the court document that “At core, Defendants’ conclusion that USDA is statutorily prohibited from funding SNAP because Congress has not enacted new appropriations for the current fiscal year is erroneous. To the contrary, Defendants are statutorily mandated to use the previously appropriated SNAP contingency reserve when necessary and also have discretion to use other previously appropriated funds.”

The court, in finding that the administration’s decision to suspend SNAP benefits for Novembe

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