man sitting at desk with American flag to left and Maryland flag to right, dark blue walls with pictures, dark suit, white shirt, dark tie.
Gov. Wes Moore announcing $62 million to fund SNAP benefits. Screenshot from video on Moore's official Facebook page.

Gov. Wes Moore ordered the release of $62 million so that Marylanders could get their full SNAP benefits.

Moore signed an executive order authorizing the funding, which represents the state’s contribution to paying SNAP recipients what they are due.

At the end of October, Maryland joined a group of 22 other states to sue the Trump administration for suspending SNAP benefits during the continuing federal government shutdown. More than 680,000 Marylanders, including 262,000 children, rely on SNAP to buy groceries and put food on the table.

The federal government has billions of dollars in contingency funds to pay SNAP benefits in this kind of situation but had refused to do so. Two federal judges — one in Massachusetts and one in Rhode Island — ruled on Friday that the Trump administration must continue to fund SNAP.

The Trump administration has since said it will fund SNAP benefits — but only partially — still leaving families with a considerable gap in their available funds for food.

“One of the first and most basic priorities of governing is to ensure that families do not go hungry,” Moore said. “We will continue to do everything in our power to protect our people in these difficult times. But no state can fill the enormous gap created by Donald Trump and his administration. It’s time for the federal government to do its job and fully fund food assistance.”

On Monday morning, the Trump administration told the court they would only cover up to 50% of SNAP benefits, and they have not said they will reimburse states for money they spend to make their programs whole.

Moore declared a State of Emergency last week to mitigate the economic impact of the federal government shutdown and to deliver resources to Marylanders for their health and welfare. He also  issued an executive order providing $10 million in emergency funding to the state’s food security partners. This money is for helping residents cope with the crisis of losing both SNAP and their paychecks if they have been furloughed or fired because of the federal shutdown.

Both sets of funding will come from the state’s Fiscal Responsibility Fund.

“Maryland families shouldn’t have to suffer because the federal government chose to pause vital benefits,” said Rafael López, secretary of Maryland Department of Human Services. “The governor’s decisive action is helping prevent Maryland families from going hungry during this senseless government shutdown. We will move urgently to get Marylanders the SNAP benefits their families depend on to put food on the table.”

The Maryland Department of Human Services is continuing to process new SNAP applications at MarylandBenefits.gov. Marylanders in need of food assistance should visit 211maryland.org.

The U.S. federal government shut down on Oct. 1, 2025 due to Congressional Republicans refusing to include a renewal of health care subsidies in the Affordable Care Act, which expire at the end of 2025. Without these subsidies, health insurance and health care premiums would balloon for millions of Americans by more than 100 percent. Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson has kept the House out of session since Sept. 19, 2025, insisting he will not bring them back until the shutdown is over.

In the meantime, Maryland will continue to offer its residents as much assistance as possible if they are federal employees or otherwise impacted by federal actions. The range of support includes:

For more resources and information on Maryland’s response to the federal government shutdown, visit this link.