Text of Senate Amendment 6196

On 2026-06-24, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) delivered a floor speech titled "Text Of Senate Amendment 6196" in the Senate.

Text of Senate Amendment 6196

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S3377-S3380] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 6196. Mr. WYDEN (for himself, Mr. Fetterman, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Booker, Mr. McCormick, Mrs. Britt, and Mr. Justice) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place, insert the following: SEC. ___. ENHANCED CYBERSECURITY FOR SNAP. (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``Enhanced Cybersecurity for SNAP Act of 2026''. (b) Definition of EBT Card.--Section 3(i) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2012(i)) is amended by inserting ``(or any successor electronic benefit transfer product)'' before the period at the end. (c) Enhanced Cybersecurity and Online Transaction Security for EBT Cards.--Section 7(h) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2016(h)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(15) Cybersecurity of ebt cards.-- ``(A) Definitions.--In this paragraph: ``(i) Chip-enabled.-- ``(I) In general.--The term `chip-enabled', with respect to a payment card, means a payment card that uses industry standard secure payment technology, as identified by the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, that-- ``(aa) provides for secure card-based payment; and ``(bb) is resistant to cloning. ``(II) Chip card technology.--The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Accredited Standards Committee X9, shall consider whether the secure payment technology described in subclause (I) should meet the industry standards for contact and contactless payments. ``(ii) Mobile friendly.--The term `mobile friendly' has the meaning given the term in section 3559(b) of title 44, United States Code. ``(iii) NIST pin and password standards.--The term `NIST PIN and password standards' means the PIN and password standards described in Special Publication 800-63B entitled `Digital Identity Guidelines' (or a successor document) of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. [[Page S3378]] ``(iv) PIN.--The term `PIN' has the meaning given the term `personal identification number (PIN)' in section 271.2 of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation). ``(B) Regulations.-- ``(i) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall promulgate, and every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary shall review and update as necessary, cybersecurity and digital service regulations relating to EBT cards and mobile technologies under the supplemental nutrition assistance program, including, at a minimum, to ensure that cybersecurity measures for EBT cards and mobile technologies keep pace with security safeguards used by the private sector and required by Federal agencies for credit, debit, and other payment cards and mobile technologies. ``(ii) Requirements.--The Secretary shall ensure that the cybersecurity and digital service regulations described in clause (i) require the following: ``(I)(aa) Each State agency shall operate the user interfaces listed on the list of required user interfaces maintained by the Secretary under item (dd)(AA), in accordance with this subclause, 1 or more user interfaces of which households in the State may, at the election of the applicable household, use to manage the EBT account of the applicable household. ``(bb)(AA) A State agency may operate other user interfaces under item (aa) in addition to the required user interfaces on the list maintained by the Secretary under item (dd)(AA). ``(BB) Any web-based online portal operated by a State agency as a user interface shall be mobile friendly. ``(cc) Each user interface offered by a State agency under items (aa) and (bb), as applicable, shall-- ``(AA) provide information in each language in which the State agency is required to make material available pursuant to section 272.4(b) of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation); ``(BB) be available to households at least 99 percent of the time; and ``(CC) include any other features required by the Secretary. ``(dd)(AA) The Secretary shall maintain a list of required user interfaces for purposes of item (aa), which may include a web-based online portal and a mobile application. ``(BB) During the 10-year period following the date on which the regulations promulgated pursuant to clause (i) become final, unless the Secretary extends that period, the Secretary shall maintain on the list under subitem (AA) the following user interfaces: text message, voice telephone service, and United States Postal Service mail. ``(II)(aa) Each State agency shall provide to households on an opt-in basis-- ``(AA) through each digital user interface offered under subclause (I), timely electronic notice of transactions using the EBT account of the household; and ``(BB) through digital or practicable user interfaces offered under subclause (I), access to, including the ability to search, historical transactions for not less than the preceding 12 months. ``(bb) Transaction information under subitems (AA) and (BB) of item (aa) shall include the amount of the transaction, the merchant for the transaction, and the city and State of the merchant. ``(cc) Each State agency shall offer households the ability, through each user interface offered under subclause (I), to report a fraudulent transaction to the State agency. ``(dd) A State agency shall not require a household to respond to or acknowledge a notice of transaction delivered pursuant to item (aa)(AA). ``(ee) A State agency shall notify any household that has reported an instance of EBT card skimming or fraud, or is otherwise identified as being a victim of EBT card skimming or fraud, of-- ``(AA) any State or Federal funds that may be reimbursed if the household experiences fraud again; and ``(BB) the ability of the household to apply fraud- prevention measures. ``(III) Each State agency shall provide households issued an EBT card the ability to check, through each user interface offered under subclause (I), the enrollment status of the household. ``(IV) Except as provided in clause (iii)(I), not later than 2 years after the date on which the regulations promulgated pursuant to clause (i) become final, State agencies shall begin issuing chip-enabled EBT cards. ``(V) Except as provided in clause (iii)(I), not later than 4 years after the date on which the regulations promulgated pursuant to clause (i) become final, State agencies may not issue new EBT cards with magnetic stripes. ``(VI) Except as provided in subclauses (I) and (II) of clause (iii), not later than 5 years after the date on which the regulations promulgated pursuant to clause (i) become final, State agencies shall be required to reissue any existing valid EBT cards with magnetic stripes as chip- enabled EBT cards without magnetic stripes. ``(VII) In the case of a chip-enabled EBT card reissued pursuant to any of subclauses (IV) through (VI), absent suspicion of fraud, as applicable, a State agency shall-- ``(aa) reissue a new chip-enabled EBT card; and ``(bb) deactivate the current chip-enabled EBT card on the earlier of-- ``(AA) the date on which the new chip-enabled EBT card is activated; and ``(BB) 90 days after the date on which the new chip-enabled EBT card is sent to the household. ``(iii) Exceptions.-- ``(I) Waivers.--The Secretary may issue a 1-time waiver of an applicable deadline described in subclause (IV), (V), or (VI) of clause (ii) with respect to a State agency, subject to the conditions that-- ``(aa) the State agency shall submit to the Secretary a request for the waiver; ``(bb) the Secretary and the State agency shall agree that insufficient adoption of payment terminals that accept chip- enabled EBT cards has occurred among retail food stores in the State; ``(cc) the waiver may extend the applicable deadline by not more than 180 days; and ``(dd) the Secretary may not issue more than 2 waivers pursuant to this subclause for a single State agency. ``(II) Early adopters.--The deadline described in clause (ii)(VI) shall not apply to any State agency that commenced the issuance of chip-enabled EBT cards without magnetic stripes before the date of enactment of the Enhanced Cybersecurity for SNAP Act of 2026. ``(iv) Sunset for requirement to use chip technology.-- ``(I) In general.--Except as provided in subclause (II), under the cybersecurity regulations described in clause (i), all EBT cards issued during the 5-year period beginning on the deadline for carrying out clause (ii)(VI) shall be chip- enabled, unless the Secretary-- ``(aa) provides a waiver for the applicable State agency pursuant to clause (iii)(I); or ``(bb) extends that period for all State agencies. ``(II) Exceptions.--Subclause (I) shall not apply to EBT cards issued-- ``(aa) by a State agency described in clause (iii)(II); ``(bb) to victims of a disaster pursuant to section 5(h); or ``(cc) solely for benefits under the summer electronic benefits transfer for children program established under section 13A of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1762). ``(III) Successor electronic benefit transfer products.-- Effective beginning on the first day after the 5-year period described in subclause (I), the Secretary may implement a successor electronic benefit transfer product to a chip- enabled EBT card required under this subparagraph pursuant to a review of EBT