The Donald Trump administration has said it will cut food aid to more than 42 million Americans, as the government shutdown continues without a resolution.
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) said in a filing that Americans who receive food assistance will get half of their normal emergency spending.
The judges gave the Trump administration until Monday to come up with a plan for how it will pay for the supplemental nutrition assistance program, also known as food stamps.
Funding for the program is in limbo because of the months-long shutdown.
While the individual US claims to administer the benefits, the program relies on money from the federal government, which has not been collected and closed from 1 October.
The states will have an explanation of how they will distribute the reduced funds by the end of the day on Monday.
Federal judges in Massachusetts and Rhode Island have ruled that the USDA must use $5.25bn (£4bn) in emergency funds to snap up Americans.
Snaps are worth about $8bn per month.
Judges say the Trump administration can use money set aside for contingencies to provide benefits.
President Trump previously said he would direct government attorneys to ask the courts how legal funding should be handled, adding:
On Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview with CNN that the President wants to hear from the courts about the payment of the funds, but they may come out for a while.
“There is a process that must be followed,” Bossent said. “That’s it, we need to know what the process is.”
Last month, the USDA said it would not distribute food aid funds beginning November 1 because of the shutdown, saying: “The well is going dry.”
Half of the states and the District of Columbia initiated the Food-Aid Freeze administration and argued that they have a legal obligation to keep the program running in their jurisdictions.
In fact, cities and nonprofits have also filed a lawsuit. Some states have said they will use their own money to fund the snap benefits.
SNAP allows more Americans to buy groceries. It gives them reloadable debit cards that they can use to buy food.
A family of four on average receives $715 per month, which breaks down to less than $6 per day, per person.