- Kansas distributed full November SNAP benefits following a court order, despite conflicting guidance from the USDA.
- The USDA is now seeking to reclaim a portion of the funds, stating the full payment was unauthorized.
- Gov. Laura Kelly expressed concern over the request, noting the funds have already been spent by recipients.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly approved the dispersal of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program on Friday, but the United States Department of Agriculture is seeking to claw back some of the funds.
SNAP recipients were initially told there would be no benefits in November due to the government shutdown. A federal judge ordered the USDA to pay 50%, then USDA guidance changed it to 65%, before another court order on Nov. 7 required the payment of full benefits.
On Nov. 8, a memo signed by deputy under secretary of the USDA’s Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Patrick Penn, a former Kansas State Representative from Wichita, warned states not to pay out the full benefits and instead distribute 65% of payments.
“To the extent States sent full SNAP payment files for November 2025, this was unauthorized. Accordingly, States must immediately undo any steps taken to issue full SNAP benefits for November 2025,” Penn said in the Nov. 8 memo.
In a memo from the day before, Penn said that Food and Nutritional Services is “working towards implementing November 2025 full benefit issuances” in compliance with the court order.
The funding has already been distributed, complicating how Kansas would return funding for the program.
“Obviously, I’m not happy about that. We just got that money distributed. People have just been able to go to the grocery store and restock. We don’t have the money in Kansas to give back. Why he wants it back, I don’t really understand,” Kelly told reporters on Nov. 10.
Kelly said the third-party vendor that issues payments to Electronic Benefit Transfer Cards, a debit card that hold SNAP benefits, “could be left holding the bag, which would be a really bad thing.”
Late on Nov. 9, the United States Senate passed a bipartisan deal that could reopen the government within a few days. Kelly said she doesn’t believe December benefits will be an issue.
Meanwhile, Trump’s solicitor general D. John Sauer announced on Nov. 10 that the administration would continue to seek to halt full funding for SNAP benefits while the government remains shut down. This comes after a lower court ordered the administration to continue paying full SNAP benefits in November.
