#Maine among dozens of states suing #Trump administration over #SNAP funding

by Russ Reed, October 30, 2025

AUGUSTA, Maine — "Maine's attorney general is part of a coalition that sued the Trump administration for suspending the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program due to the ongoing federal government shutdown.

"In their lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Office of Management and Budget and their respective secretaries, 23 attorneys general and three governors claim the USDA does not have the authority to suspend SNAP.

" 'Forty-two million Americans, including 169,000 Mainers, are going to go hungry this Thanksgiving because the Administration is simply refusing to use the billions available to prevent this,' Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey said in a statement. 'It is unconscionably cruel and unlawful.'

"The coalition suing the Trump administration said that on Oct. 10, the USDA sent a letter to state SNAP agencies saying there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits if the government shutdown continues.

"According to the coalition, the USDA has access to billions of dollars in SNAP-specific contingency funds appropriated by Congress in the event of a government shutdown. The coalition also claims the USDA has funded other programs with emergency funds during the shutdown, but has refused to fund SNAP.

"The Maine Department of Health and Human Services (#DHHS) announced on Oct. 21 it would not receive November's SNAP funding.

"According to Maine DHHS, nearly 12.5% of the state's population receives SNAP benefits. State health officials also said the rate approaches or surpasses 20% in five of Maine's 16 counties: #Androscoggin, #Aroostook, #Piscataquis, #Somerset and #Washington.

"Maine DHHS also said nearly 75% of the state's SNAP households include at least one working adult, more than half include a person with a disability, 43% include an older adult and more than one-third include children. The average monthly SNAP benefit for a family of four in Maine is $572, according to DHHS.

"Maine DHHS shared the following information for the state's SNAP recipients:

- November's federal SNAP benefits cannot be issued until the government shutdown ends or until new guidance is provided by the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service.
- At this time, SNAP benefits already loaded onto EBT cards remain available for use to purchase food.
- Applications, renewals and other updates continue to be accepted and processed by Maine DHHS during the federal government shutdown.
- SNAP recipients are encouraged to sign up for e-noticing through My Maine Connection, which provides the fastest access to updates and notifications.
- Recipients should ensure that contact information, such as their phone number and mailing address, remains current with Maine DHHS.

"For help finding information on other available resources, call 211 or text your ZIP code to 898-211. You can also visit 211Maine.org. When the government shutdown ends, more information will be available about the future of federal SNAP benefits.

"Maine DHHS will share updates as soon as additional information becomes available.

"Joining Frey in the lawsuit are the attorneys general of #Arizona, #California, #Colorado, #Connecticut, #Delaware, the #DistrictOfColumbia, #Hawaii, #Illinois, #Maryland, #Massachusetts, #Michigan, #Minnesota, #Nevada, #NewJersey, #NewMexico, #NewYork, #NorthCarolina, #Oregon, #RhodeIsland, #Vermont, #WashingtonState and #Wisconsin. The governors of #Kansas, #Kentucky and #Pennsylvania are also part of the lawsuit."

Source:
https://www.wmtw.com/article/maine-sues-trump-administration-snap-benefits/69180395

#USPol #MaineResists #Resistance #ResistTrump #TrumpSucks #TrumpIsABully #TrumpIsAFascist #USPol #SNAPCuts #USDACuts #HungerGames #KillThePoor #FoodStamps #FoodInsecurity

"RFK Jr. will have almost total personal authority over his department’s definition of who is “medically frail” and who has “special medical needs,” definitions that will play a central role in determining how Medicaid users are screened."

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/08/rfk-hhs-medicaid-work-requirements-cuts/
#DHHS ##USpol #Medicaid #Healthcare

Judge Blocks Trump Administration’s Efforts To Defund Planned Parenthood

A federal judge on Monday ruled #PlannedParenthood clinics nationwide must continue to be reimbursed for #Medicaid funding as the nation’s largest abortion provider fights President Donald Trump’s administration over efforts to defund the organization in his signature tax legislation.

https://apnews.com/article/planned-parenthood-funding-cuts-ruling-343034bc26917049d6d58a8ba8c58c21

#Abortion #DHHS #Trump2.0 #BlackMastodon

Add #SovereignTribalNations to the list of 25 states resisting #Trump's #BudgetCuts !

#NativeCommunities could lose $24.5B under #Trump administration proposal
If upheld by the courts, the proposed freeze on #FederalGrants would affect nearly every tribe

by Amelia Schafer

Excerpt: " 'Nearly all Tribes would be affected by a federal grant freeze, with many facing the prospect of losing tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars — funding that is critical for supporting some of the most historically underserved communities in the United States,' the report concluded.

" 'When the federal government withholds funding from #Tribes and #NativeAmerican people, it’s not just a policy change. It’s a violation of those commitments — putting essential services at risk and undermining Tribal governing capacity.'

"A federal appeals court will decide if the administration has the legal authority to mass-suspend the grants, with arguments set in coming months in a lawsuit filed by the state of New York against President Donald Trump and his top administrators.

" 'as litigation around OMB’s funding freeze continues, it is essential that federal decisionmakers recognize the unique basis of funding for Tribes and #NativeAmerican people,' the report states. 'Funding to #IndianCountry is rooted in longstanding, legally-binding agreements between the United States and sovereign Tribal nations — not race, climate, or DEI.'

"At the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term, the OMB issued a sweeping order announcing a halt to federal grants nationwide, throwing tribal programs into turmoil.

"Although the grant freeze was temporarily halted, the administration continues to push for its implementation, and tribes continue to report difficulties in accessing the already-approved funds, the report notes.

"The bulk of the at-risk funding is dispersed through programs such as the Department of Health and Human Services [#DHHS], the Bureau of Indian Affairs [#BIA] and the Bureau of Indian Education under the Department of the Interior, the Department of Commerce and the #EnvironmentalProtectionAgency.

"If the funding freeze clears legal hurdles, critical projects across the country will be at risk, the Brookings report said. These projects include a $35 million grant to the #OglalaSioux Tribe for #broadband development, a $3 million grant to urban #NativeHealth board for community health worker training, and a $200,000 grant to the #Chickahominy Indian Tribe for preliminary #engineering and #environmental work towards a #childcare center.

" 'This is the building block of how the U.S. government pays back tribes for the land it took,' Maxim said.

"The report does not include the sweeping cuts approved under Trump’s so-called '#BigBeautifulBill' by Congress, which includes cuts to #Medicaid, #FoodStamps and other social programs that include Native people as well as others, Brookings officials said.

"The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization based in Washington, D.C. Maxim co-authored the report with Glencora Haskins, research associate and applied research manager."

Read more:
https://ictnews.org/news/tribes-could-lose-24-5b-under-trump-administration-proposal/

#TribalSovereignty #CulturalGenocide #RespectTheTreaties #TrumpLies #TrumpBudgetCuts #USPol #TrumpSucks #FirstNations #StolenLand #LandBack #NativeAmericanNews #NativeCommunities

Speaking of #ScienceDenial and #RealityDenial, here's some beautiful debunking and exposing of #RFKjr (the one with the intellectual capacity of worm food) by the brilliant and blunt #ProfessorDaveExplains

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqI_z1OcenQ

#MAGA #MAHA #Trump #DHHS #HealthAndHumanServices #Vaccines #VaccineDenial

"Health emergencies have not paused since January. Cases of measles, salmonella, listeria and hepatitis A and C have spread throughout the country. More than 100 million Americans continue to suffer from chronic diseases like diabetes and breast cancer."

#CDC #DHHS

https://www.npr.org/2025/05/21/nx-s1-5387723/cdc-communications-cuts-social-media-public-health