Tennessee ‘prepared to comply’ with Trump administration demand for personal data of SNAP recipients

The Trump Administration has requests a trove of personal data from each state about recipients of SNAP, which provide assistance to low income families for food purchases. (Photo: Getty Images)

Tennessee is prepared to provide the U.S. Department of Agriculture with a trove of sensitive personal data on low-income recipients of federal food stamp aid, a spokesperson for the state’s Department of Human Services said.

The Trump administration made the 50-state data request on May 6. It seeks the names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers and total dollar value of benefits received for each individual enrolled in SNAP, or Supplemental Nutritional Aid Program, over the past five years. 

The letter seeking the data of millions of food stamp recipients across the nation said the federal government intends to use the information to “ensure program integrity, including by verifying the eligibility of benefit recipients.”  

SNAP recipient data has historically been kept by state governments and private vendors contracted to process payments.

USDA pauses request for personal data of SNAP recipients while lawsuit proceeds

More than 687,000 Tennesseans – or about one in every ten state residents – received the benefit as of April, according to data posted by the Department of Human Services. SNAP provides a monthly cash benefit loaded onto a debit card to be used for food purchases only. 

The federal government’s request, made in tandem with efforts by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to cut spending across the federal government, stemmed from an executive order by President Donald Trump to stop waste, abuse and fraud in public spending. 

A lawsuit filed by advocacy groups on May 22 challenged the Trump administration’s authority to demand the data. That litigation remains ongoing.

The Trump administration has since posted a message to states that its request has been temporarily halted until “requisite procedural safeguards have been met” but notes federal officials will be working with state agencies and their payment processors to “prepare for the eventual transfer of the data discussed in the (May 6) letter.”

Some states have outright refused to comply with the request, while others — such as Tennessee — have signaled they will provide recipients’ personal information. 

“Tennessee has received the request and is prepared to comply within the law,” Danielle Cotton, a spokesperson for the Tennessee Department of Human Services, said via email.