The Illinois Department of Human Services has announced that it plans to fully restore USDA Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits now that the federal government shutdown has ended.

According to a Nov. 13 news release, the department anticipates that the remaining benefit payments will be made over the coming days, with all SNAP recipients receiving their full November benefits by Nov. 20.

"The lapse in SNAP funding created unnecessary hardship for 1.9 million Illinoisans and businesses who rely on this federally funded program," the release states. "The crisis was entirely avoidable — the Trump Administration had the funding to fully support SNAP but chose not to, putting tens of millions of Americans at risk of hunger."

The department directs SNAP recipients and ot

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