Trump Administration Takes Action on SNAP Benefit Records
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is tightening rules on states reporting SNAP information following an executive order from President Donald Trump.
Why It Matters
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits are paid to low- and no-income households across the U.S. that would otherwise struggle to afford groceries. Last year, the program reached some 41 million Americans.
The program is largely funded by the federal government but administered at state and local level.
Trump’s March 20 executive order on “Stopping Waste, Fraud, and Abuse by Eliminating Information Silos” means all government agencies are now required to share “all unclassified agency records, data, software systems, and information technology systems” with the federal government.
What To Know
According to a press release issued on May 6, the USDA will now require states to “make certain all records associated” with SNAP “are shared with the federal government.”
Stock photo: A person shops at a Whole Foods Market grocery store on December 17, 2024 in New York City.
Spencer Platt/GETTY
In a letter to state agency directors, the USDA’s senior policy advisor for integrity Gina Brand said states will need to provide the following:
- Records sufficient to identify individuals as applicants for, or recipients of, SNAP benefits, including but not limited to personally identifiable information in the form of names, dates of birth, personal addresses used, and Social Security numbers.
- Records sufficient to calculate the total dollar value of SNAP benefits received by participants over time, with the ability to filter benefits received by date ranges.
Brand said the “distributed administration” of the SNAP program “takes advantage of our federal system to enable states to meet the needs of their residents.”
“At present, each state, district, territory, and payment processor is a SNAP information silo,” Brand wrote in the letter. “These various entities maintain discrete collections of SNAP application, enrollment, recipient, and transaction data, each of which is necessary in ensuring the integrity of the program.
“Thus, pursuant to the President’s Executive Order and to confirm that SNAP is being administered appropriately and lawfully, USDA and FNS (Food Nutrition Service) are working to eliminate these information silos.”
What People Are Saying
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said in May 6 press release: “President Trump is rightfully requiring the federal government to have access to all programs it funds and SNAP is no exception. For years, this program has been on autopilot, with no USDA insight into real-time data. The Department is focused on appropriate and lawful participation in SNAP, and today’s request is one of many steps to ensure SNAP is preserved for only those eligible.”
What Happens Next
No date was given for when the states needed to submit the required information by. States were warned that failure to comply “may trigger noncompliance procedures.”