the SNAP contingency fund likely has between $5 and $6 billion in it. That would cover a little more than half of the $8 billion gap in funding But the federal government also has authority to transfer more money into the contingency fund

Congressional intent is evident that SNAP’s operations should continue since the program has been provided with multi-year contingency funds that can be used for State Administrative Expenses to ensure that the State can also continue operations during a Federal Government shutdown.

These multi-year contingency funds are also available to fund participant benefits in the event that a lapse occurs in the middle of the fiscal year

In 2019, the first Trump administration used the flexibility of the law to minimize the impact of the shutdown on SNAP beneficiaries