Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced Monday that the state government will spend $62 million to ensure that participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will receive full benefits in November, after the federal government offered to pay for half.

“One of the first and most basic priorities of governing is to ensure that families do not go hungry,” Moore, a Democrat, said in a statement.

Moore’s announcement represents a change in position. For weeks, the governor had said repeatedly that states like Maryland couldn’t afford to pick up the tab for funding that the federal government is obligated to provide for vulnerable Americans.

More than 680,000 Marylanders — nearly 40% of them children — receive SNAP benefits each month to help keep food on the table. The average benefit is $180.

As the federal government shutdown has stretched to more than a month, the Trump administration announced that regular SNAP funding would no longer flow to participants in November.

Multiple lawsuits — including one that Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown is participating in — were filed to force the Trump administration to keep paying for SNAP benefits.

On Monday, the Trump administration told a court it had enough money in a contingency fund to pay half of benefits in November.

Moore responded by directing $62 million of state money be used to make up the difference to ensure full benefits. The money comes from an account that collects money when certain tax revenues come in higher than expected known as the Fiscal Responsibility Fund. It has nearly $200 million available, Moore administration officials have said.

In Maryland, SNAP participants’ cards are loaded with the aid on a rolling basis throughout the month in alphabetical order, starting on the fourth of the month — Tuesday — and continuing through the 23rd.

State officials said they’re working to get the money out quickly, but said there could be delays in updating the cards of those who receive benefits early in the month.

With federal SNAP funding in limbo, several states announced plans in recent weeks to use state money to keep money in SNAP participants’ accounts.

In Maryland, Moore declared a state of emergency last week and committed an additional $10 million to support food banks and pantries — but not any state funding to backfill lost SNAP benefits.

Democratic and Republican state lawmakers had pressed Moore to use money in the state’s more than $2 billion Rainy Day Fund to ensure that SNAP recipients would still receive full benefits. Analysts estimated that the full cost of one month’s SNAP funding would be about $125 million.

“I applaud our governor for stepping up and making sure hungry people are fed in our state,” Del. Ben Barnes, a top Democrat who held a hearing on the matter, said in a statement. “The Governor is leading with values and the House [of Delegates] fully supports this use of state money.”

Barnes noted that more funding issues could be forthcoming with the Trump administration. “We won’t be able to solve every crisis they send our way, but when we can, we should,” Barnes said.

House of Delegates Speaker Adrienne A. Jones, a Baltimore County Democrat, issued a statement thanking Moore for hearing lawmakers’ concerns “and responding to the urgency of the situation.”