TRENTON, NJ – New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin has joined 21 other attorneys general in suing the federal government to stop what they describe as an unlawful attempt to strip food assistance from thousands of lawful residents.
Filed Wednesday, the lawsuit challenges new U.S. Department of Agriculture guidance that limits Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility for several categories of legal immigrants, including refugees and asylees who have obtained permanent residency.
Platkin said the USDA’s directive contradicts federal law and threatens to wrongfully cut off aid to families who legally qualify for food assistance.
The suit seeks a court order blocking the USDA from enforcing the policy and asks that the guidance be declared unlawful.
Federal guidance called ‘unthinkable’ amid rising costs
In a statement, Platkin accused the Trump Administration of targeting legal immigrants without justification. “Cutting SNAP benefits to legal residents is unlawful, unnecessary, and unthinkable at a time when families are having harder and harder time affording basic groceries,” he said.
The USDA memo, issued October 31, claimed that certain humanitarian entrants—including refugees, asylees, and parolees—would remain permanently ineligible for SNAP even after gaining green card status.
According to the lawsuit, that interpretation has no basis in federal statute, which explicitly allows these groups to qualify once they become lawful permanent residents and meet standard income and eligibility requirements.
States say USDA violated its own rules
The attorneys general argue the agency also failed to follow its own regulations, which require a 120-day adjustment period before new guidance can take effect. The USDA, however, set the compliance deadline for November 1—one day after issuing the memo.
That move, the states claim, exposes them to heavy financial penalties for administrative errors stemming from the rushed implementation.
Coalition led by New York and Oregon
The legal action was spearheaded by the attorneys general of New York and Oregon and includes California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
Platkin and the coalition are asking the court to halt the policy immediately to prevent legal residents from losing access to vital food assistance.
New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin joined 21 states in suing to block federal SNAP guidance that cuts benefits for legal immigrants.
