25 states have filed a lawsuit to force the federal government to release funds for SNAP during the federal government shutdown. The USDA has refused.

The US government said funds for Snap, a benefit used by more than 40 million Americans, will stop 1 November because of the shutdown.

The Department of Agriculture has said benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will not be issued in November, claiming “the well has run dry.”

The SNAP program provides food stamps to more than 40 million Americans. The program is on the verge of running out of fund because of the government shutdown.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has said its hands are tied by the funding impasse in Congress.

25 states have filed a lawsuit to force the federal government to release funds for SNAP during the federal government shutdown. The USDA has refused.

The states argue the Trump administration should use an emergency fund for the programme, which helps about 40 million people.

Local food banks and pantries across the country are seeing increases in need due to layoffs and government workers being furloughed during the shutdown.

A federal judge in Massachusetts might order the federal government to tap emergency funds to pay for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.

Here’s what you need to know about the federal SNAP program, which provides food assistance to nearly one in eight Americans. It could go dark on Saturday.