ST. PAUL — Federal judges ruled on Friday, Oct. 31, that the Trump administration must use contingency funds for SNAP benefits during the federal shutdown.

The ruling Friday afternoon came hours before the United States Department of Agriculture said it would halt SNAP benefits altogether, saying on Monday, Oct. 27, that the “well has run dry.”

Twenty-eight states, including Minnesota, filed suit on Tuesday, arguing the halt in benefits is illegal and that the administration should be tapping into a contingency fund set aside by Congress for the purpose of emergencies like a shutdown.

Roughly 440,000 Minnesotans are on SNAP; 152,000 of those are children and 72,000 are seniors, according to the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families.

“Today’s ruling made it clear tha

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