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America's top court has issued an emergency order that permits for now the federal government to withhold billions of dollars for nutrition assistance relied on by countless needy U.S. residents.

The White House sought relief from the Supreme Court after a federal judge ordered that the SNAP program, also known as food aid, should be paid out in full to recipients by Friday.

This assistance has been left in limbo by the ongoing federal government shutdown, with the government arguing it could only pay for part of it.

The court's decision means £3.04bn can be temporarily withheld pending further legal hearings.

SNAP's Reach

The Snap programme is issued by tens of millions of U.S. citizens - around one in eight - and requires almost $9bn a each month.

On Thursday, a Rhode Island judge, John McConnell, accused the government of withholding food aid "due to political motives" and said that without the aid "millions of kids are in danger of going hungry".

The judge mandated the administration to fund the assistance in full.

Legal Background

The Thursday ruling came after that ordered the administration to use contingency funds to at least partially fund the assistance for last month.

This court battle was triggered after the US Department of Agriculture, which oversees the Snap programme, stated payments would be stopped in November due to the lack of funding over the budget crisis.

Prior to the high court's action, the Agriculture Department said it was working to comply with the multiple rulings and was taking steps to distribute the full funds.

High Court's Move

Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson issued the stay late Friday, called an temporary halt, effectively freezing the previous decision for 48 hours while federal attorneys pursue an appeal.

The row over food aid funding has become among the most contentious of what is now the longest government shutdown in American history.

Broader Impact

Government workers have been unpaid for over 30 days and flight operations has been thrown into chaos as Congress members cannot reach a compromise to pass a budget.

Several states have used their own budget savings to keep food benefits going, which are valued at around $6 to recipients via pre-loaded debit cards which can be used in food markets.

But some states have said they are cannot cover the funding which has been cut by the U.S. treasury.