EPIC Again Urges USDA to Abandon Proposed National SNAP Database That Threatens Privacy

On Wednesday, EPIC submitted comments urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to withdraw its revised System of Records Notice for the proposed National SNAP Information Database, a centralized database that would unlawfully collect sensitive personal information about Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applicants and recipients nationwide. 

Although USDA made minor revisions after receiving hundreds of public comments in response to its original proposal last year, EPIC explained that the updated notice still fails to comply with the Privacy Act and the Food and Nutrition Act. EPIC noted that USDA has not demonstrated that creating the database is necessary to fulfill a lawful agency purpose and that the notice continues to authorize overly broad data disclosure to law enforcement and other government agencies, lacks adequate limits on data retention, and appears to establish a federal matching program without complying with the Privacy Act’s requirements. 

EPIC urged USDA to withdraw the notice and abandon its efforts to consolidate the sensitive personal information of SNAP recipients and applicants into a single federal database. 

EPIC routinely monitors, analyzes, and educates the public about the collection, use, retention, and transfer of personal information by federal agencies, including large-scale databases and mass surveillance programs. EPIC has also undertaken significant research, advocacy, and public education concerning the systems and databases used in the provision of public benefits, including SNAP.