Overview

• A coalition of 20 state attorneys general filed suit on July 28 in federal court in Northern California to block the USDA’s demand for all SNAP recipient data.
• The USDA has ordered states to hand over five years of beneficiary records—including Social Security numbers, home addresses and immigration status—by the July 30 deadline or face funding sanctions.
• The lawsuit argues the unprecedented request exceeds the agency’s legal authority and violates federal and state privacy statutes.
• Attorneys general from California, New York and other states warn the move could facilitate deportations and deter immigrant families from seeking food assistance.
• States have refused to comply with the data request and are awaiting a court ruling on their bid for a preliminary injunction.