A judge on Monday signed an order temporarily prohibiting the federal government from penalizing states that are offering SNAP benefits to families in need, including refugees or asylum-seekers.

The order came amid an ongoing court battle between President Donald Trump’s Administration and attorneys general across the country related to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program following the longest government shutdown in history.

The shutdown upended SNAP assistance for millions of Americans for weeks. About 1.9 million Illinoisans are enrolled in the program.

In November, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and 21 other AG’s offices sued the Trump administration after it attempted to cut off SNAP benefits for tens of thousands of lawful permanent residents.

Monday’s order – by the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon – ensures that those vulnerable populations continue to receive food benefits.

“The SNAP program is the country’s most important anti-hunger program, providing access to food for millions of families while supporting local grocers and merchants who are critical to our state’s economy,” Raoul said in a news release. “I’m pleased with the court’s action, which will ensure that SNAP programs in Illinois and across the country will be able to continue providing food assistance to those in need this holiday season.”

Though the Trump administration on Dec. 10 issued new guidance, confirming that lawful permanent residents, including refugees and asylum-seekers, remain eligible for SNAP, the president has threatened to further target Democrat-led states with penalties.

The administration warned on Dec. 2 that it will withhold money for administering SNAP food aid in most Democratic-controlled states starting this month unless those states provide information about people receiving the assistance, The Associated Press reported.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday that the action is looming because those states are refusing to provide data the department requested, such as the names and immigration status of aid recipients. She said the cooperation is needed to root out fraud in the program. Democratic states have sued to block the requirement, saying they verify eligibility for SNAP beneficiaries and that they never share large swaths of sensitive program data with the federal government.

The federal government administration has also threatened states with millions of dollars in penalties, claiming that states were not entitled to a required “grace period” enabling them to properly implement the new guidance, even though the final guidance was not issued until Dec. 10.

Joining Raoul in filing the lawsuit were the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.

The Associated Press contributed.