Ending Stolen SNAP Benefits Act of 2026

Grace Meng

Democrat · NY · Representative

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

• Brian K. Fitzpatrick (R-PA-1)Original· 2026-06-18

Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.

2026-06-18

Source: Congress.gov

This bill would allow people who receive food assistance benefits to get their money back if it's stolen through identity theft or card skimming (when criminals illegally copy card information). Currently, households that lose their benefits this way may have difficulty getting them replaced, so this change would make it easier for low-income families to recover stolen food assistance funds.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 9359 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 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.''. <all>

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