By Leah Douglas

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Department of Agriculture directed states to roll back any steps taken to issue full food aid benefits to low-income Americans or risk financial penalties.

The new guidance issued late on Saturday follows the U.S. Supreme Court order on Friday that allowed the Trump administration to continue withholding $4 billion to fully fund the aid for nearly 42 million recipients, pending a lower court ruling.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, also known as food stamps, lapsed at the start of the month for the first time in the program’s 60-year history due to the federal government shutdown, which is now in its 40th day.

Hours before the Supreme Court order, the USDA had informed states in a memo that it was working to comply with

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