Oregon and Washington joined a multi-state lawsuit on Tuesday seeking to force the Trump administration to continue funding the federal food assistance program as the government shutdown continues.

The states are among more than two dozen that are suing the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Secretary Brooke Rollins over the upcoming lapse in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program, also known as SNAP or food stamps.

“This isn’t complicated – people need to eat,” Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said in a news release Tuesday. “If these benefits stop, thousands of Oregonians will be left wondering how to put food on the table. The USDA has the authority and the money to keep SNAP running, and refusing to do so is both illegal and deeply cruel.”

Congress has so far failed to pa

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