USDA Inspector General John Walk told a House Oversight subcommittee Thursday that fraud in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program has allowed individuals linked to terrorist groups, foreign adversaries and transnational criminal organizations to access and abuse food stamps. The testimony before the House Oversight Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency marked the latest push by the Trump administration and House Republicans to crack down on alleged waste, fraud and abuse in the federal SNAP program.
Walk said organized criminals are stealing benefits from vulnerable Americans through electronic benefit transfer card skimming, trafficking operations and identity fraud. He described increasingly sophisticated schemes targeting the roughly $100 billion federal food assistance program that leave many legitimate recipients without money to buy food.
"SNAP fraud is a reprehensible crime that squanders the compassion of American taxpayers who fund the program and robs from those low-income Americans who qualify for SNAP benefits to feed themselves and their families," Walk testified.
Walk recounted speaking with a New York father of five whose SNAP benefits were stolen after criminals skimmed his EBT card. He also highlighted a Southern California investigation in which SNAP benefits were allegedly exchanged for cash and crack cocaine, with gang members using proceeds from the fraud to purchase firearms.
"I'll just repeat that," Walk said. "SNAP dollars, federal tax dollars, used to buy drugs and guns."
What the Right Is Saying
Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., argued additional state cooperation could uncover even more abuse within SNAP. He claimed USDA officials identified roughly $3 billion in potential fraud using data submitted by participating states.
Burchett cited examples including benefits allegedly sent to 186,000 deceased individuals, 442,000 applicants with fraudulent Social Security numbers and hundreds of thousands of duplicate recipients in the system. He criticized 21 states for declining to provide requested SNAP data to USDA, arguing the lack of participation prevents federal officials from identifying additional fraud.
"If food stamp recipients' data stays in state-specific databases, individuals may apply for and receive benefits from multiple states," Burchett said. Republicans argued that broader access to state eligibility data could uncover billions more in improper payments and organized criminal activity.
What the Left Is Saying
House Democrats argued during Thursday's hearing that the effort could be used to justify cuts to food assistance for eligible Americans. Food Research and Action Center Director of SNAP Policy and Advocacy Gina Plata-Nino testified that organized theft of EBT benefits poses a serious problem but cautioned lawmakers against confusing payment errors with fraud.
"Program integrity and food access are not competing goals," Plata-Nino said. She warned that portraying administrative errors as intentional fraud risks harming vulnerable Americans who depend on the program for basic nutrition assistance.
Democrats acknowledged concerns about improper payments but emphasized that SNAP serves millions of low-income families, children and elderly individuals who rely on the benefit to meet their nutritional needs.
What the Numbers Show
SNAP serves roughly 42 million Americans at an annual cost of approximately $100 billion, making it one of the largest federal benefit programs. The USDA inspector general's office has identified roughly $3 billion in potential fraud and waste using data from participating states.
According to Walk's testimony, criminals can install EBT card skimming devices in as little as seven seconds, allowing thieves to clone benefit cards and drain accounts immediately after monthly benefits are deposited. The program has faced increasing reports of organized benefit theft targeting vulnerable recipients.
The Bottom Line
Walk told the subcommittee that limited access to state recipient data makes it difficult to detect fraud before taxpayer dollars are spent. "We cannot pay and chase our way to stopping SNAP fraud," he said. "We need to guard the front door."
The hearing reflects ongoing tension between program integrity efforts and protecting benefits for legitimate recipients. What happens next: The subcommittee is expected to continue examining ways to improve data sharing between federal and state agencies while evaluating additional safeguards against benefit theft.