Attorney General Letitia James has joined 20 other attorneys general and the state of Kentucky in a federal lawsuit aimed at blocking a new Trump administration policy that demands states hand over sensitive personal information of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, argues that the administration’s requirement is illegal and would unlawfully expose private data—such as addresses, Social Security numbers, and immigration status—for more than 40 million Americans receiving food assistance.
“Families should be able to get the food assistance they need without fearing that they will be targeted by this administration,” said James. “We are suing today to stop this illegal policy and protect New Yorkers’ privacy and access to food assistance.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has demanded that states submit detailed personal information for all SNAP recipients dating back to January 2020. According to James, this demand violates federal and state laws that restrict such data from being shared outside of the SNAP program.
The USDA has also threatened states with potential funding cuts if they refuse to comply, putting millions of dollars in SNAP administration at risk. James and the coalition argue that the data will be used for immigration enforcement, in violation of the law.
The lawsuit seeks a court ruling declaring the administration’s actions unconstitutional and a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. It also demands that the administration be barred from sharing any collected SNAP data with the Department of Homeland Security or the Department of Government Efficiency for non-SNAP purposes.
In May, roughly 2.9 million New Yorkers relied on SNAP, including nearly 1 million children. James said the new policy puts all of them at risk.
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