Supreme Court Decides Full Snap Food Benefits Can Be Put on Hold.
America's top court has granted an urgent ruling that permits for now the federal government to withhold billions of dollars for food benefits used by countless needy U.S. residents.
The White House appealed to the Supreme Court after a federal judge ordered that the SNAP program, called food stamps, should be paid out in full to recipients by Friday.
This assistance has been caught in uncertainty by the ongoing federal government shutdown, with the government arguing it could only afford to partially fund it.
Friday's ruling means $4bn can be temporarily withheld pending further legal hearings.
SNAP's Reach
The Snap programme is used by tens of millions of U.S. citizens - approximately 12% - and requires almost £6.9bn a each month.
Earlier this week, a federal magistrate, the presiding judge, alleged the Trump administration of blocking nutrition funds "for political reasons" and said that without the aid "16 million children are in danger of facing hunger".
The judge mandated the government to pay out the assistance completely.
Legal Background
The Thursday ruling followed another that required the government to use reserve money to at least partially fund the assistance for last month.
The legal saga was spurred after the USDA, which manages the food stamp program, stated benefits would be halted in the fall due to the lack of funding over the budget crisis.
Prior to the high court's action, the Agriculture Department said it was attempting to follow with the various court orders and was making efforts to doll out the complete amount.
High Court's Move
High Court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson issued the order on Friday evening, known as an temporary halt, pausing the previous decision for two days while government lawyer's pursue an appeal.
The row over nutrition program money has become one of the bitterest of what is now the lengthiest budget standoff in US history.
Broader Impact
Government workers have been unpaid for over 30 days and flight operations has been disrupted as Congress members cannot reach a deal to pass a budget.
Some states have used their own budget savings to keep food benefits going, which are valued at around six dollars to recipients via electronic benefit cards which can be redeemed in food markets.
But some states have said they are cannot cover the funding which has been cut by the U.S. treasury.
