PHOENIX – The Trump administration is threatening to withhold funding for operating SNAP from Arizona and other Democratic-led states that won’t share personal information about the food aid program’s recipients with the federal government.

While SNAP benefits are federally funded, the cost of administering the program is shared by the federal government and states. It’s not clear how much it would cost Arizona and other states to keep distributions flowing without federal support.

States were given until Dec. 8 to respond to a letter sent by the U.S. Department of Agriculture last week urging compliance with its data-sharing order.

“We have sent Democrat states yet another request for data, and if they fail to comply, they will be provided with formal warning that USDA will pull their administrative funds,” the USDA said in a statement Tuesday.

Arizona is part of a lawsuit to protect SNAP recipients’ personal data

After the USDA initially asked for the recipient information in May, Arizona joined a multistate lawsuit opposing the request in July. On Oct. 15, a judge granted a preliminary injunction sought by the plaintiffs.

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes’ office declined a request for comment about the latest threat to SNAP administrative funds, but Mayes addressed the issue after the lawsuit was filed on July 28.

“The Trump administration wants to use personal data as a weapon — not to fight fraud, but to intimidate vulnerable families and discourage them from seeking basic help,” she said in a press release at the time. “Arizona won’t be complicit in violating privacy laws or betraying the trust of Arizonans trying to feed their families.”

The USDA said it asked for the names, dates of birth, addresses and Social Security numbers of every SNAP recipient to comply with a March 20 executive order from President Donald Trump called “Stopping Waste, Fraud and Abuse by Eliminating Information Silos.”

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday the states’ cooperation is needed to root out fraud in the $100 billion-a-year program, which helps 42 million lower-income Americans afford groceries.

According to Rollins, information provided by the compliant states showed 186,000 dead people receiving SNAP benefits and 500,000 recipients getting benefits more than once.

SNAP at center of another controversy

The SNAP program is back in the news after becoming a major issue during the recent government shutdown. The Trump administration withheld benefits in November, but not without facing legal challenges that became moot when the government reopened.

A spokesperson for Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs said the state has safeguards to prevent SNAP fraud without federal intervention and accused the Trump administration of “using vulnerable families to advance their political agenda.”

“This latest threat from Secretary Rollins is a dangerous attack on Arizonans. The Trump administration is yet again weaponizing food assistance for political gain. Instead of focusing on political games, the administration should prioritize making sure people don’t go hungry,” Press Secretary Liliana Soto said in a statement to KTAR News 92.3 FM on Wednesday.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Balin Overstolz McNair and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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