California leads lawsuit against Trump Administration over SNAP data demands
California Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration for demanding personal data from millions of SNAP recipients. Read the full complaint here.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, joined by 20 other state attorneys general, has filed a federal lawsuit challenging an unprecedented data demand by the Trump administration's Department of Agriculture (USDA).
The lawsuit, filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, seeks to block the USDA’s attempt to compel states to turn over the personal information of millions of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients.
The plaintiffs are seeking declaratory and injunctive relief to block the USDA’s data demands and protect state authority in administering SNAP without violating residents’ privacy rights.
The complaint argues that the USDA’s demand—including names, home addresses, Social Security numbers, immigration status, and five years of household data—is illegal, unconstitutional, and part of a broader federal effort to compile sensitive personal information for purposes unrelated to administering food assistance.
“President Trump continues to weaponize private and sensitive personal information — not to root out fraud, but to create a culture of fear where people are unwilling to apply for essential services,” said Attorney General Bonta in a statement. “We will not comply with this illegal demand. We’ll see the President in court.”
According to the complaint, the USDA is threatening to withhold critical administrative funding—approximately $1.3 billion annually for California alone—if states do not comply by July 30, 2025. The lawsuit argues that this coercion violates federal privacy laws, including the Privacy Act of 1974 and the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988, as well as the Spending Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
“This unprecedented demand that states turn over SNAP data violates all kinds of state and federal privacy laws and further breaks the trust between the federal government and the people it serves,” Bonta added.
The coalition behind the lawsuit includes attorneys general from New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Michigan, Arizona, and several other states, representing millions of SNAP recipients whose personal information is at risk.
