Office of the
Illinois Attorney General
Kwame Raoul

Chicago – Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as part of a coalition of 21 attorneys general, sent a letter urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to correct errors in new federal instructions outlining who can receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Attorney General Raoul and the coalition warn that the USDA’s new guidance wrongly treats several groups of immigrants as ineligible for food assistance, contradicts long-standing federal law, and could illegally block lawful permanent residents who were granted asylum or entered the United States as refugees, parolees, or other humanitarian entrants from receiving food benefits they are entitled to.

“The SNAP program is the country’s most important anti-hunger program, providing access to food for millions of families while supporting local grocers and merchants who are critical to our state’s economy,” Raoul said. “The USDA’s new eligibility guidance violates the law and harms the state’s ability to support vulnerable populations and provide vital services to residents in need.”

On Oct. 31, the USDA sent guidance to state SNAP agencies outlining changes to program eligibility under the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill,” including new restrictions on non-citizens’ eligibility for SNAP. The memo was issued nearly four months after the underlying law took effect and became binding the very next day, which was a Saturday, leaving states almost no time to implement the guidance. In the memo, the USDA incorrectly states that several categories of migrants, including legal permanent residents who were admitted as refugees, people granted asylum, and individuals brought to safety through humanitarian parole programs, are categorically “not eligible” for SNAP.

In their letter, Raoul and the coalition emphasize that, under federal law, refugees and individuals granted asylum or humanitarian parole become eligible for SNAP as soon as they obtain lawful permanent residence status. Many of these individuals get their green cards within their first few years in the United States, immediately making them eligible for SNAP. The attorneys general argue that the USDA’s failure to acknowledge this pathway leaves states with instructions that could cause them to illegally deny food assistance to thousands of families.

Refugees, asylees, people whose deportation has been withheld, and others become eligible for SNAP as soon as they receive a green card and are exempt from a five-year federal waiting period that applies to some lawful permanent residents. The new guidance, however, wrongly removes these groups from the exemption list, directly contradicting federal statutes and the USDA’s own regulations.

Additionally, federal regulations give states a transition period of 120 days after new guidance is issued to adjust to new requirements without facing severe financial penalties. However, with this guidance, the USDA is now claiming that this period ended on Nov. 1, one day after the guidance was released, and before states even had a business day to review it. Attorney General Raoul and the coalition explain that this reading is impossible under the USDA’s own rules, which make clear that the 120-day transition period cannot begin until new guidance is issued. By ignoring this requirement, the USDA is putting states at risk of penalties for errors created entirely by the agency’s own delay and inaccuracies.

The coalition is calling on the USDA to immediately correct these legal mistakes by clarifying that refugees, asylees and individuals admitted through humanitarian parole programs may qualify for SNAP once they become lawful permanent residents; accurately listing the humanitarian groups exempt from the five-year waiting period; and providing a lawful explanation of how the five-year rule works. They also demand that the USDA recognize that the transition period began on the date the guidance was issued, so that no state is penalized for confusion caused by the USDA’s flawed and delayed instructions.

Joining Attorney General Raoul in sending the letter are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.