The U.S. Supreme Court and Congress hold the keys to determining when full payments will resume for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which supports one in eight Americans in purchasing groceries as financial strains increase in certain states.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court is anticipated to decide on a plea from President Donald Trump’s administration to persist in preventing states from distributing full benefits, citing potential needs for the funds elsewhere.

This back-and-forth in court rulings has led to a patchwork situation: beneficiaries in states like Hawaii and New Jersey have received their complete monthly benefits, while those in Nebraska and West Virginia have yet to see any aid.

The ongoing legal disputes may become irrelevant if the U.S. House acts swiftly to pass legislation that President Trump signs, effectively ending the federal government shutdown.

SNAP has been the center of an intense fight in court

The decision by the Trump administration to cease funding for SNAP after October, due to the shutdown, triggered legal challenges and a series of rapid, conflicting court rulings. These rulings delve into the scope of governmental authority and affect food security for 42 million Americans.

The administration went along with a pair of rulings from Oct. 31 from judges who said the government must provide at least partial funding for SNAP. It eventually said that recipients would get up to 65% of their regular benefits. But it balked last week when one of the judges said that it must fund the program fully for November, even if itt means digging into funds the government said need to be maintained in case of emergencies elsewhere.

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to pause that order.

An appeals court said Monday that full funding should resume – and that requirement is set to kick in Tuesday night unless the top court takes action again.

It’s also a point in Congressional talks about reopening government

The U.S. Senate on Monday passed legislation to reopen the federal government with a plan that would include replenishing SNAP funds.

Speaker Mike Johnson told members of the House to return to Washington to consider the deal a small group of Senate Democrats made with Republicans.

Trump has not said whether he would sign it if it reaches his desk, but told reporters at the White House on Sunday that it “looks like we’re getting close to the shutdown ending.”

If the deal is finalized, it’s not clear how quickly SNAP benefits might start flowing.

Still, the Trump administration said in a filing Monday with the Supreme Court that it shouldn’t be up to the courts. “The answer to this crisis is not for federal courts to reallocate resources without lawful authority,” Solicitor General D. John Sauer said in the papers. “The only way to end this crisis – which the Executive is adamant to end – is for Congress to reopen the government.”

The impact is urgent for beneficiaries

The cascading legal rulings – plus the varying responses of each state to the shutoff – means people who rely on SNAP are in vastly different situations.

Some have all their benefits, some have none. In states including North Carolina and Texas, beneficiaries have received partial amounts.

In Pennsylvania, full benefits went out to some people on Friday. But Jim Malliard, 41, of Franklin, said he had not received anything by Monday.

Malliard is a full-time caretaker for his wife, who is blind and had a series of strokes earlier this year, and his teenage daughter, who suffered severe medical complications from surgery last year.

That stress has only been compounded by the pause in the $350 a month he receives in SNAP for himself, his wife and daughter. He has yet to receive any SNAP payment for November, and he’s down to $10 in his account and is relying on what’s left in the pantry – mostly rice and ramen.

“It’s kind of been a lot of late nights, making sure I had everything down to the penny to make sure I was right,” Malliard said. “To say anxiety has been my issue for the past two weeks is putting it mildly.”