The Trump Administration is threatening to withhold some Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funds from Maine and other Democratic-led states that have refused to provide the names and immigration status of recipients to the federal government.

During a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said cuts will begin next week for states that have not provided more data on SNAP recipients. The government is targeting administrative funds, not the benefits people receive, according to the Associated Press.

“We asked for all the states for the first time to turn over their data to the federal government to let the USDA partner with them to root out this fraud, to make sure that those who really need food stamps are getting them, but also to ensure that the American taxpayer is protected,” Rollins said.

Maine has refused for months to provide the information and this summer joined a lawsuit challenging the request for personal information, including Social Security numbers, birth dates and home addresses. In September, a federal judge temporarily blocked the administration from disallowing SNAP funds.

Rollins said 28 states and Guam have complied with the data request, but 21 have not.

The federal government last week sent states a letter urging compliance, but the parties agreed to give the states until Dec. 8 to respond.

“We have sent Democrat States yet another request for data, and if they fail to comply, they will be provided with formal warning that USDA will pull their administrative funds,” the USDA said in a statement Tuesday.

A spokesperson for Gov. Janet Mills said Wednesday that the governor and the Maine attorney general “will stand in the way of this cruel and callous attempt by President Trump to cause Maine people to go hungry.”

The federal government funds benefits for about 42 million people, but states share the cost of running SNAP. Federal law allows the USDA to withhold some of the money states receive for administering SNAP if there’s a pattern of noncompliance with certain federal regulations.

Sen. Susan Collin, R-Maine, said in a statement Wednesday that she urged the USDA to distribute SNAP benefits during the government shutdown to support vulnerable families and is glad food aid “is currently not at risk.”

When it comes to the administrative funds, Collins said she expects any efforts to withhold them to be held up in court.

“In the meantime, I would encourage the state to be transparent with the data the administration has requested to prevent waste, fraud, or misuse of these taxpayer-funded benefits that help so many American families,” Collins said.

Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, said in a statement Wednesday that “rather than confront the very real crisis of hunger in Maine and across the country, the Trump administration is hellbent on destroying the program that 42 million Americans rely on to feed their families.”

“The historic gutting of SNAP in the Big Ugly Bill wasn’t enough for them. Now Secretary Rollins is threatening to illegally withhold federal funding from states that won’t hand over sensitive personal information on SNAP recipients — data they want for immigration enforcement despite a federal court order blocking this exact demand. We all saw how well the last data grab by DOGE went,” Pingree said in the statement.

The offices of Sen. Angus King and Rep. Jared Golden did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

SNAP was in the spotlight during the government shutdown after the administration said it would not release funding for monthly benefits. That move prompted multiple lawsuits and orders from judges to distribute SNAP. Ultimately, November benefits in Maine were distributed on schedule.

That uncertainty came weeks after the largest ever cuts to the program went into effect in October, putting heightened pressure on Maine food pantries, some of which report record numbers of people seeking assistance.

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.

This story will be updated.

Tuesday’s storm was a serious snowmaker for some parts of New England — especially in New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont.

While areas to the south saw mostly rain, some local towns received a foot of snow or more.

The jackpot towns receiving the most snow were Freedom, New Hampshire, at 12.6 inches, and Anson, Maine, at exactly one foot.

Here’s a look at snowfall totals across the region, according to the National Weather Service:

Massachusetts

Pittsfield: 7″

Becket: 7″

Fitchburg: 7″

Lunenberg: 7″

Ashby: 7″

Vermont

Manchester: 10.6″

Tunbridge: 8.5″

Landgrove: 8.5″

New Hampshire

Freedom: 12.6″

Bridgewater: 11.1″

Peterborough: 9.5″

Meredith: 9.3″

Durham: 9″

Dunbarton: 9″

Moultonborough: 8.8″

Albany: 8.5″

Laconia: 8.5″

Manchester: 8.4″

Maine

Anson: 12″

Porter: 11″

China: 9″

Farmingdale: 8.4″

Baldwin: 8.4″

CONCORD, N.H. (ABC22/FOX44) – New Hampshire officials are seeking public assistance in relation to the unsolved homicide of Louise Chaput, who died 24 years ago. This announcement was made by state Attorney General John Formella and New Hampshire State Police Colonel Mark Hall earlier this week.

The 52-year-old psychologist was found dead near the Glen Boulder Trail in the White Mountains’ Presidential Range November 22, 2001. Investigators determined she was stabbed to death.

While the mystery of her death has still not been solved, state officials have come out with a photo showing a backpack similar to the one she had – and which disappeared along with several other of her personal belongings, including a blue Kanuk sleeping bag and her car keys.

Chaput was last seen on November 15, 2001. A receipt found in her car indicated that she had stopped at a convenience store in Colebrook earlier in the afternoon, and an employee at a nearby lodge said that a woman he identified as Chaput had asked about a short hike she could go on at around 3:00 p.m.

Her family reported her missing on November 19, and her body was found a few days later.

“The passage of time has not diminished our resolve to find out what happened to Louise Chaput. We know someone out there… encountered something that can help us understand her final hours,” said Senior Assistant Attorney General R. Christopher Knowles.

New Hampshire’s Cold Case Unit is seeking possible information from people hiking in the Pinkham Notch region, on the date of Chaput’s last known sighting. Those that were active on forums discussing weather conditions in the White Mountains around that time should also contact investigators, authorities say.

Anyone with information can contact the New Hampshire Cold Case Unit via email, for by calling (603) 271-2663.