Press Release  AG Campbell Secures Second Order Blocking Trump Administration From Cutting Off SNAP Funding Because of States' Refusal to Turn Over Personal Data of SNAP Applicants and Recipients

BOSTON — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell today celebrated a decision from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California blocking the Trump Administration’s renewed attempts to cut off funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to states that refuse to turn over personal and sensitive information about millions of applicants and recipients.  

Last year, AG Campbell joined a coalition in filing a lawsuit against the Trump Administration alleging that the demand for personal and sensitive SNAP data violates federal law. The District Court agreed that the demand was likely unlawful, in part because the Administration had stated its intent to disclose and use the demanded data for purposes unrelated to the administration of federal benefits programs and granted a preliminary injunction.  

The coalition then went back to court when the Trump Administration again threatened to cut off administrative funding to states that do not turn over this data pursuant to a new data and security protocol that U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) had proposed. Today, the District Court held that USDA cannot collect states’ records without an agreed-upon protocol. Moreover, the District Court found that the USDA’s proposed protocol was unlawful, because the protocol allowed USDA to share the states’ data with entities unrelated to the administration of federal benefits programs, contrary to federal law.  

“Today, the court once again made clear that the Trump Administration cannot punish states that refuse to help fuel its cruel immigration agenda by violating the privacy of vulnerable children and families trying to make ends meet,” said AG Campbell. “Using hunger as a political weapon is unacceptable, and I will continue fighting to ensure that the federal government complies with federal laws so that families can feed their children without having their privacy violated or fearing that accessing benefits will lead to ICE at their doorstep.”  

SNAP is a federally funded, state-administered program that provides billions of dollars in food assistance to tens of millions of low-income families across the country. SNAP applicants provide their private information on the understanding, backed by federal law, that their information will not be used for unrelated purposes. In an attempt to bully states into compliance, the Trump Administration has repeatedly threatened to withhold administrative funding for the program if states fail to comply with its unprecedented demand for data — effectively forcing states to choose between protecting their residents’ privacy and providing critical nutrition assistance to those in need. 

AG Campbell has vigorously defended SNAP from attacks by the Trump Administration. During the last government shutdown, AG Campbell sued USDA to force them to fund November SNAP benefits. In November of 2025, AG Campbell again sued the Trump Administration to challenge USDA’s guidance that erroneously excluded certain lawfully residing non-citizens from SNAP eligibility. In response to that lawsuit, USDA backed down and issued corrected guidance.     

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