SNAP Benefits Win For Lawful Permanent Residents

NEW YORK, New York – New York Attorney General Letitia James has welcomed the decision by a United States federal judge blocking the Trump administration’s efforts to penalize states with millions of dollars in fines related to their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) operations.

“Our most vulnerable residents rely on SNAP to put food on the table. Despite the federal government 's best efforts to make it more difficult for food assistance to reach

those in need, today’s decision ensures New York’s SNAP program can continue running without interruption,” James told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) on Wednesday.

“I am grateful to the court for recognizing the urgency of this matter, especially this holiday season,” she added.

On November 26,  James led a coalition of 21 attorneys general in suing the Trump administration after it attempted to cut off SNAP benefits for tens of thousands of lawful permanent residents.

On December 10, the administration reversed itself and issued new guidance, confirming that lawful permanent residents – including former refugees and asylees – remain eligible for SNAP benefits.

But, despite that reversal, James said the administration “continued to threaten states with millions of dollars in fines, claiming that states had missed a required “grace period” for implementing the new guidance,   even though the final guidance was not issued until December10.

On Monday, the US District Court for the District of Oregon issued an order temporarily blocking those penalties.

The court’s decision prohibits the federal government’s efforts to impose severe financial penalties on states and protects the continued operation of SNAP programmes while the case proceeds.

James said she and the coalition are seeking to block new guidance from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) that “wrongly declares several groups of legal immigrants ineligible for food assistance, including permanent residents who were granted asylum or admitted as refugees.”

The attorneys general warn that the guidance would “saddle states with catastrophic financial penalties unless they immediately implement the unlawful restrictions.”