New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin has joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) over its recent demand that states provide personal and sensitive information about millions of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients.
The SNAP program, which is federally funded but administered by states, provides food assistance to low-income families across the United States. Applicants for SNAP are required to share private information with assurances under state and federal law that this data will not be used for unrelated purposes.
The USDA has indicated it may withhold administrative funding from states that do not comply with its request for recipient data. For New Jersey, federal funding accounts for about $190 million—roughly half of the state's annual administration costs for SNAP. Any disruption in these funds could significantly impact both the state and residents who depend on the program.
Attorney General Platkin stated, “We will not be intimidated by the Trump Administration’s threats to illegally withhold SNAP funding unless we agree to violate the privacy of our residents. Under New Jersey and federal law, data provided by SNAP recipients is only to be used for administering this critical program. The Trump Administration’s unprecedented demand for data such as Social Security numbers, addresses, and more is illegal and would violate the privacy of our residents. We have long been committed to fighting for data privacy, and that is why we are joining this lawsuit to protect New Jersey residents.”
For six decades, New Jersey and other states have managed SNAP as an essential safety net for millions of Americans needing grocery assistance. Over this period, state agencies and the federal government have developed systems to ensure benefits go only to eligible individuals. According to USDA's own assessments, SNAP operates one of the most rigorous quality control systems among federal programs.
In May 2025, however, USDA requested extensive personal information on all SNAP applicants and recipients—including Social Security numbers and home addresses—dating back five years. This includes approximately 824,020 individuals in New Jersey alone. The stated purpose was fraud prevention; however, critics argue that these demands contradict previous findings by USDA regarding fraud controls.
The complaint also notes broader efforts by federal officials since President Trump returned to office in January 2025 to collect large databases of Americans’ personal information from various sources. There are reports that similar collections have occurred through other agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Health and Human Services—efforts which New Jersey has already challenged in court.
Federal and state laws restrict disclosure of personally identifying information from SNAP unless necessary for program administration or under specific circumstances—which do not apply here according to the lawsuit filed today. The coalition argues that USDA’s demands violate multiple privacy laws, bypass public comment requirements, exceed statutory authority, and breach constitutional limits on spending power.
The attorneys general from California, New York, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington State and Wisconsin join Platkin in this legal action along with Kentucky’s governor.
A copy of the lawsuit is available .
