AG Brown joins 21 state coalition suing USDA for demanding personal information from Washington residents

Attorney General Nick Brown, as part of a coalition of 21 states, filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) demand that states turn over personal and sensitive information about millions of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients.

This lawsuit is separate from a state lawsuit Brown filed on July 24 in Thurston County Superior Court against Fidelity Information Services for breaching its contract to deliver SNAP benefits payments.

SNAP is a federally funded, state-administered program providing 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 long-standing state and federal laws, that their information will not be used for unrelated purposes. 

However, USDA has suggested that it could withhold administrative funding for the program if states fail to comply with its demands. 

Washington state receives roughly $129.5 million a year to administer the program, and any delay in that funding could be catastrophic for the state and the residents who rely on SNAP for food.

“The Trump administration’s illegal and cruel action threatens the privacy and well-being of our communities,” Brown said. “Our office will take action to protect Washingtonians from yet more overreach by the Trump administration.”

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