Great Lakes Wire

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has joined a group of 20 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The suit challenges a recent USDA demand for states to provide personal information about Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients.

SNAP is a federally funded program managed by states, which provides food assistance to low-income families. Michigan distributes around $254 million in SNAP benefits each month. State and federal laws have long protected the privacy of applicants’ information, limiting its use to program administration.

The USDA has indicated that it may withhold administrative funding from states that do not comply with its request for data, which includes social security numbers and home addresses dating back five years. Michigan officials say any delay or loss of federal funds could have serious effects on residents who depend on SNAP benefits.

In the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Nessel and other attorneys general argue that the USDA’s demand violates several federal privacy laws and constitutional protections.

"This is yet another attempt by the Trump Administration to illegally use personal, sensitive data to fuel the president’s political agenda under the guise of fighting fraud and abuse,” Nessel said. “My colleagues and I will not allow this administration to trample on constitutional protections or unlawfully exploit the SNAP program in this way. Michigan families deserve to have their personal information protected, and I will keep fighting until they receive exactly that.”

For decades, state agencies have worked with the federal government to ensure only eligible individuals receive SNAP benefits through strict quality control measures described by USDA as among "the most rigorous" in government oversight. These processes have never required mass sharing of personally identifying information outside clear legal restrictions.

The coalition’s lawsuit claims that the USDA’s new demands exceed its statutory authority, ignore requirements for public comment on such actions, and violate spending rules outlined in the Constitution. They are asking the court to block enforcement of these demands and prevent federal funding from being tied to compliance.

Nessel is joined by attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin; as well as Kentucky and Washington D.C., in filing this challenge.

A copy of the lawsuit will be available on the AGNews website after it is filed.