Published October 24, 2025

To better understand the discussion of how to manage the shutting down of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, it is important to understand how issuance happens behind the scenes. Below is a step-by-step layout of the process involved in authorizing issuances, making issuances available to recipients, and redeeming benefits in stores. 

1. How Issuances to Recipient Households Are Authorized 

The process of getting food into recipients ’ hands begins with the state generating an Issuance File each month. Essentially, it is a list of each household that is eligible to receive benefits and how many benefits they are to receive. The file is sent by the state to its Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) contractor the month before issuance.  So, for example, the file that authorizes the issuance of benefits for November is sent to the contractor in October. This allows the contractor to perform their tasks to ensure that issuances occur correctly and timely.   

This is an automated process and occurs a bit differently in each state, depending on the computer system in the state and how it interfaces with the EBT contractor’s system.  In the example here, the November file in some states is sent as early as the first week in October, but can be as late as the third week in October.  After the file is transmitted, updated information is sent to adjust it if changes occur in household circumstances or to add new households to the file. The total amount of a state’s authorized issuance is reported to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which then authorizes that amount of funds in an individual state’s Letter of Credit, which will eventually be used to pay for food bought with the benefits. USDA cannot move posted money into a state’s Letter of Credit if there are no funds to back it up. This is a critical piece to understand. When funds are posted into the Letter of Credit, there are federal funds to back it up, even though the money has not moved yet. 

2. Processing the Issuance File 

Upon receiving the Issuance File from a state, the EBT contractor moves it into the EBT system to prepare for issuance. This involves adding authorized benefit amounts to existing household accounts and setting up new accounts for new households. It is important to note that the amounts that are processed for each account are not available to households until the issuance date for that household. 

Issuance schedules are set by each state, and they are not all the same. Most states stagger the issuance of benefits over a period of time. That can be over a week or through the entire month. This helps recipients and stores so that all benefits do not appear in accounts the same day, triggering a surge in shopping. These surges, which were common before staggering schedules, cause inventory problems and staffing problems for stores since they would have to staff up for a couple of days of heavy shopping. They also caused problems for recipients who would encounter long lines at stores.   

3. Redemption of Benefits 

Benefits are redeemed when the recipient purchases eligible foods in an authorized store with them. Stores have to apply to USDA to be authorized to accept SNAP benefits. There are criteria stores must meet to be authorized. When a store is authorized, EBT contractors are notified, and they are able to process transactions that come from the authorized store. Contractors cannot accept transactions from unauthorized stores.   When a recipient purchases $50 of eligible food, the amount is deducted from their account. The EBT processor sends the $50 to the store and then claims $50 from the state’s SNAP Letter of Credit. Until this point in the process, no money has moved. While this happens quickly (hours or overnight), there is a period where the contractor has fronted the money and is then reimbursed.   

4. Managing a Government Shutdown – Mechanically 

USDA has options for managing SNAP benefit issuance during a government shutdown.  

The first option should be to prevent any stoppage of benefits and issue SNAP benefits on time so that there is no disruption to benefits.   

The second option is to direct states not to transmit their monthly issuance files to Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) contractors. This is what USDA instructed states on October 10 to do. This action prevented November benefits from being posted to individual household accounts, effectively pausing benefit availability.  

In some states, however, system design creates additional complications. Certain states automatically issue both the current month’s benefit and pre-load the following month’s benefit whenever a household is newly certified for SNAP. In these states, preventing the next month’s issuance may require temporarily halting new SNAP application processing to stop future benefits from being queued. Other states issue benefits separately each month, and therefore, do not need to pause applications to comply with such a directive.  

A second, far more drastic option would be for USDA to suspend benefit redemptions by withdrawing authorization from all SNAP retailers, effectively blocking EBT contractors from processing transactions. This step would immediately prevent recipients from purchasing food — not only with new benefits, but also with any remaining balances from prior months. USDA has stated that it does not intend to use this option. 

5. Communicating During a Shutdown 

Effective communication during a shutdown is both critical and challenging. Four key groups must receive timely, coordinated information: state agencies, EBT contractors, retailers, and recipients. 

States play a central role, as they are responsible for halting benefit issuances when directed and for communicating directly with clients. They must be engaged early to understand expectations — such as whether to delay sending issuance files — and to ensure consistent messaging to recipients. 

EBT contractors also need clear guidance on operational expectations, since their systems and workflows will be directly affected. Retailers, managed at the federal level by USDA, must receive authoritative communication from the department so they can prepare for potential disruptions. 

In practice, recipients will feel the impact most acutely at the store level. Therefore, retailers must be equipped with accurate, up-to-date information to share with customers, helping to minimize confusion, frustration, and misinformation during the shutdown. 

6. Impact on Retailers 

Retailers are the backbone of SNAP’s delivery system, processing millions of EBT transactions each month. A disrupted or unpredictable issuance schedule has immediate consequences: 

  • Supply chain shock and inventory issues: Retailers depend on a consistent SNAP disbursement schedule to forecast demand, staff appropriately, and order perishable goods. When benefits are released unpredictably — or withheld entirely — accurate planning becomes impossible. Sudden, unscheduled waves of shopping can overwhelm stores, deplete supplies of fresh produce, dairy, and meat, and leave shelves empty of essential, nutritious foods. 
  • Cash flow and personnel strain: Regular benefit timing creates serious financial and operational challenges. Small and mid-sized grocers, already operating on tight margins, may struggle to manage cash flow without steady purchasing patterns. Store employees also face added pressure — coping with chaotic shopping surges, processing irregular EBT transactions, and assisting anxious customers during periods of uncertainty. 
  • Customer confusion and frontline tension: SNAP participants rely on timely benefits to budget for groceries. Delayed or unpredictable deposits can cause confusion at checkout, longer lines, and heightened frustration. This environment increases stress for both customers and grocery workers, who often become the first point of contact for systemwide breakdowns beyond their control. 

7. Restarting Operations After a Shutdown 

When a shutdown ends, coordinated actions must occur quickly to restore SNAP operations. States must generate and transmit issuance files to their EBT contractors, determine a new issuance schedule, and decide whether to release benefits all at once or stagger them over several days to prevent system overload. 

If issuance files were previously generated and held, states must update them to reflect any household changes that occurred during the shutdown, such as new applications, income adjustments, or eligibility updates. EBT contractors then process the revised files and prepare household accounts for benefit redemption. 

Retailers must also be ready for a potential surge in shopping once benefits are reissued. Depending on the state’s chosen schedule, stores will need to adjust staffing, replenish inventory, and ensure systems are equipped to handle high transaction volumes and increased customer demand. 

Take Action: Preventing a SNAP Crisis 

In short, SNAP benefit issuance is a tightly choreographed process involving early state file submissions, federal funding authorizations, and real-time retailer reimbursements. A government shutdown interrupts that choreography — forcing states to hold files, delaying funding approvals, and risking administrative errors and public confusion. 

But this disruption doesn’t have to happen. USDA has both the authority and the resources to keep SNAP benefits on schedule. By acting now and using its contingency and transfer funds, the Department can prevent delayed payments, protect families from hunger, and uphold its responsibility to 42 million Americans who rely on SNAP every month. 

  • Use the  FRAC social media toolkit here for ready-to-share posts, graphics, and sample messages. 
  • Tag USDA and federal leaders to increase visibility and accountability:
    @USDAgov; | @SecRollins; | @RealDonaldTrump; | @JDVance.
    Key Congressional voices to tag: John Thune (R-SD), John Boozman (R-AR), Susan Collins (R-ME), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Mike Johnson (R-LA), Steve Scalise (R-LA), G.T. Thompson (R-PA), and Tom Cole (R-OK). 
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