WASHINGTON - A directive from the U.S. Department of Agriculture has introduced fresh uncertainty for millions of Ohio and Pennsylvania residents who rely on food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. The new federal guidance issued on Saturday requires states to halt or reverse any efforts to issue full November benefits, forcing a partial payment system instead.

The memorandum from the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service cited a U.S. Supreme Court administrative stay of a lower court order. The stay effectively blocks the release of funds required to pay 100% of November SNAP benefits. The directive instructs states to process partial payments reflecting a 35% reduction of maximum allotments.

The federal order directly contradicted actions already underway in some states, complicating benefit distribution and raising the specter of state liability.

In Ohio, the USDA’s guidance ends the brief anticipation of a full benefit issuance, reverting the state to a partial payment schedule and creating questions about existing state relief funds.

On Friday, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, or ODJFS, published a news release indicating the state was "likely to issue full November SNAP benefits to Ohioans by next week". The announcement, which came after the state received updated guidance from FNS, suggested full payments could begin this week.

However, the release was updated later that evening, noting that the information was "no longer accurate" and that SNAP benefits were delayed due to the ongoing federal court action.

The subsequent Nov. 8 USDA memo confirmed that the state could not move forward with its full benefit plan. Ohio must now process the partial issuance files that reflect the required 35% reduction in maximum SNAP allotments.

Approximately 1.4 million Ohioans receive about $264 million in SNAP food benefits each month.

This shift also introduces questions about the state’s $25 million in emergency food assistance. Previously, Gov. Mike DeWine had ordered ODJFS to distribute up to $18 million in emergency relief benefits to more than 63,000 low-income Ohioans. The original plan stated that the "additional emergency relief benefits will cease" if there was a "distribution of full SNAP benefits".

Because the new federal guidance mandates only a partial SNAP benefit, the status of the state’s emergency relief for Ohio Works First recipients is now unclear. The state must decide how its partial federal payment system will interact with the $18 million state-funded aid intended to bridge the gap caused by the initial suspension of federal funding.

In Pennsylvania, the USDA's directive came on the heels of Gov. Josh Shapiro’s announcement that his administration was taking steps to issue full SNAP benefits to nearly 2 million state residents.

Just a day earlier, on Friday, Shapiro’s administration announced a move to expedite the release of benefits following a federal court ruling that required the administration to release 100% of the funds. The state’s Department of Human Services, or DHS, had already begun processing approximately $100 million worth of benefits onto recipients’ electronic benefits transfer, or EBT, cards.

The USDA’s Nov. 8 memo explicitly stated that to the extent states had sent full SNAP payment files, the action was unauthorized. It ordered states to "immediately undo any steps taken to issue full SNAP benefits for November 2025".

The memo also carried a financial warning. According to federal regulations, states that do not comply face possible federal action, including the cancellation of the federal share of state administrative costs and holding states responsible for any excess payments resulting from failure to adhere.

The threat of liability now looms over Pennsylvania officials as they navigate whether they can stop or retrieve funds already in the process of reaching nearly 2 million families, seniors, and children.

For both Ohio and Pennsylvania, the latest federal action means the number of people facing food insecurity remains high, with millions receiving less assistance than they need, as state administrators grapple with compliance issues and financial risk.