PRACTITIONER BLOG
Read our analyses of developments in Impact Litigation and stay current on class action law
Impact Fund and Western Center on Law and Poverty Reach Settlement with USDA to Provide Emergency Food (SNAP) Assistance to Californians with Greatest Need
Over one million California households will soon be eligible to receive emergency COVID-19 related nutrition assistance, thanks in part to a settlement agreement reached yesterday by the Impact Fund, Western Center on Law and Poverty, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This important victory comes after ten months of litigation in Hall v. USDA, which challenged the Department’s interpretation of the March 2020 law authorizing emergency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments—otherwise known as food stamps—to current SNAP recipients. Within hours of the settlement, USDA issued new guidance announcing a policy change that will provide at minimum $95 a month in emergency assistance to all households participating in SNAP on top of their regular monthly benefits. This updated policy will ensure the lowest-income Californians will have access to vital nutrition assistance while continuing to deal with the severe economic and public health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
SNAP! Impact Fund and Western Center on Law and Poverty File Class Action Lawsuit Against USDA For Denying Emergency Food Assistance To Californians With Greatest Need
On May 21, 2020, the Impact Fund and the Western Center on Law and Poverty filed a class action lawsuit in federal court in San Francisco against USDA and Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, alleging that USDA is illegally denying emergency food aid to the poorest households in California. We argue that USDA is misinterpreting the Families First Act in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. “The idea that people who were already struggling to get by before the crisis should not receive the additional help being granted to other SNAP recipients is cruel and absurd,” said Alexander Prieto, a senior litigator for Western Center on Law & Poverty. “It goes against the intent of the Families First Act, which is why we are seeking relief for our clients.”