BY MORGAN CHILSON
Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — The federal government has renewed efforts to gather personal data of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients in Kansas, giving the state a July 30 deadline to respond.
The Kansas Department for Children and Families received the request on July 9, said spokeswoman Jenalea Randall.
“We are still reviewing the published notice in order to understand the intent behind this request and how the data will be used,” she said. “Our obligation to maintain these records in confidence is paramount, and they may only be disclosed to the USDA for specific program-related reasons.”
U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins sent the letter to states, once again demanding private information about SNAP recipients, including Social Security numbers and home addresses, to be turned over by July 30.
The information was necessary to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive order that each federal agency access data from all state programs that receive federal funding, Rollins said in the letter.
Nationally, the demand is being challenged in court by students, SNAP recipients, the Electronic Privacy Information Center and MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger. On Thursday, the group filed a motion asking for a restraining order to stop the latest attempt at data collection while the lawsuit is pending, according to a press release.
The Trump administration initially asked for the data in May, and DCF denied it. In a letter to a third-party data provider, DCF’s Carla Whiteside-Hicks, director of economic and employment services, said the agency has an obligation to maintain the records in confidence.
“At this time, we are unsure as to the reason for the USDA’s request. As such, we are unable to consent to your turning the information over,” she wrote.
Plaintiffs in the lawsuit contend that in a sworn declaration dated May 30, a top USDA official at the agency promised it would not move forward without following federal laws.
Instead, the agency made this new demand, which the plaintiffs in the case said violates the Privacy Act, Paperwork Reduction Act and the Administrative Procedure Act.
“This Administration is trying to work the system,” said Madeline Wiseman, counsel at the National Student Legal Defense Network, in a press release. “After promising in court to follow proper procedures, USDA’s actions out of the courtroom continue to demonstrate a disregard for the legal requirements that limit its ability to collect and use this data. This lawlessness must be stopped.”
Randall said a hearing in the lawsuit is set for July 23, 2025, to address the temporary restraining order the plaintiffs have requested.
The Trump administration, through the Department of Justice, also is attempting to access other sensitive data from voter registrations, according to Stateline.
So far, no requests have been made in Kansas, said Whitney Tempel, spokeswoman for Secretary of State Scott Schwab.
“While we’ve had discussions with the Department of Justice about general voter roll maintenance, they have not requested access to our voter data,” she said in an email. “We explained Kansas’ voter roll maintenance to DOJ, how we remove for death, non-citizen, felony, moving, etc.”