Press Release  AG Campbell Sues To Block Unlawful SNAP Eligibility Guidance

Boston — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell today joined 21 other attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to stop the federal government from unlawfully cutting off Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for thousands of lawful permanent residents and threatening to impose onerous financial penalties on states. AG Campbell and the coalition are seeking to block new guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that wrongly treats several groups of legal immigrants as ineligible for food assistance, including permanent residents who were granted asylum or admitted as refugees. The attorneys general argue that the guidance contradicts federal law and could impose massive financial penalties on states and are asking the court to declare the guidance unlawful.  

“The Trump Administration continues to evade its responsibility to feed people, this time by targeting our immigrant communities. The Administration’s unlawful guidance purports to require the states to terminate benefits for eligible families who desperately need them,” said AG Campbell. “I won’t stop fighting until this unlawful guidance is corrected to ensure all eligible SNAP recipients can access these essential benefits.”  

On October 31, USDA issued new guidance to state SNAP agencies describing changes to program eligibility under the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which narrowed eligibility for certain non-citizen groups, including refugees, asylum recipients, and others admitted under humanitarian protection programs. The USDA guidance, however, incorrectly asserted that all individuals who entered the country through these humanitarian pathways would remain permanently ineligible for SNAP, even after obtaining green cards and becoming lawful permanent residents. Last week, AG Campbell and 20 other attorneys general formally called on the federal administration to clarify its position or withdraw and correct the memo. The USDA has not replied. 

In their lawsuit, AG Campbell and the coalition emphasize that USDA’s position is not mentioned in the “One Big Beautiful Bill” or in any other federal law. Federal statutes make clear that refugees, asylees, humanitarian parolees, individuals whose deportation has been withheld, and other vulnerable legal immigrants become eligible for SNAP once they obtain their green cards and meet standard program requirements. The attorneys general argue that USDA’s memo illegally rewrites those rules and threatens to cut off food assistance for people who are fully eligible under the law.  

The attorneys general argue that USDA’s guidance also misapplies the agency’s own regulations. Federal rules give states a 120-day grace period after new guidance is issued to adjust their systems without facing severe financial penalties. USDA is now claiming that this period expired on November 1, just one day after the guidance was released and before states even had a single business day to review it. The coalition argues that this interpretation is impossible under USDA’s own regulations, which state that the 120-day period cannot begin until new guidance is actually issued. Because the statute also imposes a cost-shifting framework on states’ SNAP programs, USDA is exposing states to major financial penalties for errors caused by the agency’s late and inaccurate memo.  

States have already begun implementing the statutory changes enacted earlier this year, but USDA’s abrupt and incorrect guidance now forces them to overhaul eligibility systems overnight. The attorneys general warn that this will create widespread confusion for families, increase the risk of wrongful benefit terminations, erode public trust, and place states in an untenable situation where they must either violate federal law or accept severe financial liability. The attorneys general are asking the court to vacate the unlawful guidance and block its implementation to ensure that families do not lose critical food assistance.  

Joining AG Campbell in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. 

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