AG Rayfield: “These decisions are a reminder that following the law and common decency still matter.”
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield today praised two federal court rulings that protect access to food assistance for millions of Americans – including hundreds of thousands of Oregonians who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to help feed their families. The decisions, issued in separate cases, block the Trump administration’s unlawful attempt to suspend or curtail SNAP benefits during the ongoing federal shutdown.
Earlier today, a court in Massachusetts issued an order in the multistate lawsuit filed by Attorney General Rayfield and the attorneys general of 24 other states, and the District of Columbia. The court gave the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) until Monday to present a plan to continue at least partial funding of the program.
“Today’s ruling sends a message that no administration can use hunger as a political weapon,” said Attorney General Rayfield. “SNAP is one of the most effective anti-poverty programs in our country’s history. No Oregon family should have to wonder how they’ll eat because of a government shutdown. These decisions are a reminder that following the law and common decency still matter.”
Almost simultaneously, a federal court in Rhode Island granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) in a separate lawsuit—filed by a coalition of local governments, faith-based and nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and labor groups represented by Democracy Forward and the Lawyers’ Committee for Rhode Island—requiring the administration to use contingency funds to sustain SNAP benefits while that case proceeds.
In the multi-state case out of Massachusetts, the court found that the states are likely to succeed on their claim that the USDA acted unlawfully by suspending SNAP during the shutdown. The court directed the federal government to notify the court by Monday, November 3, whether they will make available contingency or discretionary funds to pay partial or full benefits while the case continues.
In the Rhode Island case, the court concluded that the administration likely violated the Administrative Procedure Act and federal appropriations law when it refused to use available funds to fund SNAP during the shutdown and, additionally, abruptly terminated work-requirement waivers in high-unemployment areas without lawful authority.
SNAP currently provides food assistance to roughly one in six Oregonians, generating over $1 billion annually in federal food purchasing power that supports local grocers, farmers, and food producers statewide.