21 states sue Trump admin over changes to immigrants’ SNAP eligibility

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Democratic attorneys general in states like California and New York argue that new guidance illegally blocks legal permanent residents from receiving food stamps.

By Rachel Shin

Democratic attorneys general from 21 states and the District of Columbia sued the Trump administration Wednesday over guidance that they say unlawfully blocks certain groups of legal immigrants from accessing food aid.

The GOP’s tax and spending package, which was signed into law in July, narrows some immigrants’ eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the nation’s largest anti-hunger initiative. Green-card holders, however, can apply for benefits after a five-year waiting period.

In their lawsuit, state officials allege USDA issued guidance on Oct. 31 incorrectly declaring that legal permanent residents, including those who came to the U.S. as refugees and asylum seekers, are permanently ineligible for SNAP. They are asking the judge to bar USDA from implementing the guidance.

“The Guidance is arbitrary and capricious because the Defendants failed to provide a reasoned explanation for why the agency was changing its position as to whether individuals who have had the following status were subject to the five-year waiting period: Refugees, Individuals Granted Asylum, Deportation Withheld, and other groups that have the same eligibility as Refugees under statute,” stated the lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon.

The filing comes after attorneys general sent Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins a letter raising the issue last week.

USDA declined to comment on pending litigation.

“President Trump was elected with a resounding mandate to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse across the federal government — which includes ensuring that illegal aliens are not receiving benefits intended for American citizens,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement.

State officials argue the guidance, if left to stand, would levy heavy financial penalties on states and must be reversed quickly.

“USDA’s interpretation could saddle states with fines so extreme that some warn they could be forced to shut down their SNAP programs entirely — a disastrous outcome that would leave millions of Americans without access to the nation’s most essential anti-hunger program,” New York Attorney General Letitia James wrote in a statement Wednesday.

The officials also noted that USDA did not grant the required 120-day grace period after issuing the new guidance for states to implement the change, leaving them to scramble to overhaul their eligibility systems overnight.

“The federal administration should stop violating the law so blatantly,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta previously told POLITICO. “We will continue to monitor, hold them accountable.”

This lawsuit is the latest in a tug-of-war over who can access food aid and how the federal government should regulate SNAP. Democratic states have already been engaged in a series of legal battles over the program, from suing the Trump administration to release full benefits during the record-breaking government shutdown, to pushing back against USDA’s request for personal data on SNAP applicants.