HouseH.R. 9359119th Congress
Ending Stolen SNAP Benefits Act of 2026
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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9359 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9359
To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to provide for the
reissuance to households of supplemental nutrition assistance program
benefits to replace benefits stolen by identity theft or typical
skimming practices, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 18, 2026
Ms. Meng (for herself and Mr. Fitzpatrick) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to provide for the
reissuance to households of supplemental nutrition assistance program
benefits to replace benefits stolen by identity theft or typical
skimming practices, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Ending Stolen SNAP Benefits Act of
2026''.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS.
Section 7 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2016) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (e) by inserting ``or from the reissuance
of benefits stolen by identity theft or typical skimming
practices'' after ``mail''; and
(2) in subsection (h)(7)--
(A) by striking ``Regulations'' and inserting the
following:
``(A) Reissuance of benefits.--Regulations''; and
(B) by adding at end the following:
``(B) Reissuance of stolen benefits.--
``(i) Issuance of regulations.--The
Secretary shall issue regulations, consistent
with the procedures determined by the Secretary
under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section
501(b)(1) of division HH of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2023 (Public Law 117-328; 7
U.S.C. 2016a(b)(1)), without regard to the
limitations in subparagraphs (B) and (C) of
section 501(b)(2) of such Act--
``(I) to establish criteria and
best practices for State agencies to
identify supplemental nutrition
assistance program benefits stolen by
identity theft or typical skimming
practices in a way that minimizes the
burden of victim households to
establish the theft;
``(II) to provide for the
reissuance to households of benefits
stolen by identity theft, or typical
skimming practices, that meet such
criteria; and
``(III) to permit State agencies to
reissue stolen benefits to the same
household, provided the Secretary has
approved a State agency's transition
plan in accordance with section
16(l)(2).
``(ii) Status report.--Not later than 240
days after the Secretary issues regulations
under clause (i), the Secretary shall submit to
the Congress a report on the status of benefits
reissued under such regulations that includes--
``(I) a detailed description of the
prevalence of stolen benefits for which
benefits are reissued under such
regulations;
``(II) an examination of current
barriers, feasibility, and impact on
participant access and ease of use in
developing an electronic benefit
transfer card that contains
technologies such as an embedded
microchip in common use in the
financial services industry along with
the traditional magnetic stripe; and
``(III) such other information as
by the Secretary considers to be
appropriate.
``(iii) Stolen benefit reissuance report.--
Not later than 120 days after end of each
fiscal year that begins after the Secretary
issues regulations under clause (i), the
Secretary shall submit to the Congress, and
make available to the public, a report for such
fiscal year with respect to each State that
includes the aggregate value of supplemental
nutrition assistance program benefits reissued
under such regulations and the number of
households to which such benefits were
reissued.
``(iv) Evaluation.--To maximize the
accessibility and security of electronic
benefit transfer cards, the Secretary shall
periodically review and modify such regulations
to take into account evolving technology and
the threat landscape to better protect against
benefit theft.''.
SEC. 3. COST SHARING FOR TRANSITIONING TO CHIP-ENABLED EBT CARDS.
Section 16 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2025) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by striking ``subsection (k),'' and
inserting ``subsection (k), except as provided in subsection
(l),''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(l) Administrative Cost-Sharing for Transitioning to Chip-Enabled
EBT Cards.--
``(1) In general.--On approval of a plan submitted by a
State agency under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall pay to
such State agency an amount equal to 90 percent of all
administrative costs incurred by the State agency in carrying
out a transition from magnetic-stripe EBT cards to EBT cards
with chip technology that complies with the American National
Standards Institute X9.58-2024 EBT standard, or its succeeding
standard, including costs associated with--
``(A) card issuance strategies;
``(B) one-time up-front costs paid by the State to
card vendors;
``(C) business and functional design requirements;
``(D) implementation planning;
``(E) system testing;
``(F) education and outreach in language accessible
by all households, including informational activities
under subsection (a)(4); and
``(G) any other administrative fees reasonably
necessary for the successful implementation of chip
cards.
``(2) Approval of transition plans.--
``(A) Submission.--A State agency shall submit to
the Secretary for approval a plan that carries out
paragraph (1), including system testing, retailer and
household education, and outreach efforts. State plans
must include steps to ensure that recipients will
retain access to their benefits without interruption
during the transition.
``(B) Secretarial action.--Not later than 90 days
after the date on which the Secretary receives a
complete plan under subparagraph (A), the Secretary
shall--
``(i) approve the plan;
``(ii) approve the plan with conditions; or
``(iii) disapprove the plan and provide the
State agency with a written explanation of the
reasons for such disapproval.
``(C) Deemed approval.--If the Secretary fails to
take action within the 90-day period described in
subparagraph (B), the plan shall be deemed approved.
``(3) Sunset.--This subsection shall sunset on September
30, 2031.''.
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