SNAP Lawsuit Dismissed - Mission Accomplished: Increased Food Security For 40M!
Anna Chau, Paralegal
On September 12, 2023, Impact Fund and Western Center on Law and Poverty filed a class action complaint and ex parte application for a temporary restraining order against the U.S Department of Agriculture to ensure continuation of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits in the face of a pending government shutdown. At that time, the federal government had not established a federal budget, and SNAP benefits would have been immediately suspended. Over 40 million families and individuals rely on SNAP benefits to meet basic needs and faced going hungry had SNAP benefits been disrupted.
Shortly after Plaintiffs initiated the lawsuit, the USDA implemented a key accounting policy change that was requested in the class action complaint. The new policy provides protection for SNAP recipients by ensuring that benefits continue for one month after a lapse in federal appropriations.
While this ensured SNAP benefits were not suddenly interrupted, because Congress continued to pass only short-term budget resolutions, class members faced ongoing uncertainty whether their benefits would be allocated on a longer-term basis. Plaintiffs reported trying to conserve their SNAP benefits by rationing funds, distracting themselves from hunger with water and sleep, and choosing between food and other basic necessities such as gas, hotel rooms for homeless plaintiffs and vital medications. As each new short-term budget expiration deadline approached, Impact Fund and Western Center filed a series of motions for preliminary injunctions asking the Court to order USDA to follow its statutory duty to ensure that SNAP benefits would continue independent of whether Congress specifically allocated funds.
On January 23, 2024, Defendants filed a motion to dismiss asserting that Plaintiffs’ complaint was premature absent a full government shutdown, and that the risk of harm was too speculative to confer Article III standing.
A hearing was set for April regarding plaintiff’s preliminary injunction motion and the government’s motion to dismiss. However, on March 9, 2024, President Biden signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024, which appropriated funds for SNAP through the end of the 2024 fiscal year. As no further relief was required, the case was dismissed on March 15, 2024.
The case is Erdmann-Browning v. Vilsack, 4:23-cv-04678-JST (N.D. Cal., March 15, 2024)