Delmarva Public Media: Privacy advocates urge states not to comply with USDA requests for food stamp data

Late Monday, a coalition of legal groups sent letters to FIS and two other SNAP payment processors, Conduent and Solutran, arguing the USDA’s data demand does not comply with various federal laws, including the Privacy Act, Paperwork Reduction Act or the agency’s own legal requirements, and therefore should not be followed. 

“Because the request itself is legally deficient, your companies may incur liability under state law for sharing individuals’ [personal identifying information] in the absence of a valid government request,” the letter reads. It is signed by attorneys from Protect Democracy, the Center for Democracy & Technology and the Electronic Privacy Information Center. 

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