In a significant development, the Alabama Department of Human Resources has announced that it will cease efforts to recover stolen Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for residents of the state. This decision follows Congress’s failure to reauthorize the replacement of these stolen benefits within a temporary spending package that President Joe Biden recently signed into law.
The halt in recovery efforts comes at a time when Alabama is grappling with a surge in benefit theft. In November alone, the Alabama Department of Human Resources reported disbursing over $5 million to victims of such theft, addressing nearly 14,000 claims. The state has been particularly vulnerable to fraud, with common tactics including the cloning of electronic benefits transfer (EBT) cards and skimming. This latter method involves the unauthorized installation of devices on point-of-sale terminals, which are used to capture sensitive EBT card information.
Moreover, the issue of EBT theft is exacerbated by internet data breaches, where the personal information of SNAP recipients, including social security numbers, is compromised and made available online. As a result, many residents who rely on these benefits for essential food assistance may find themselves increasingly at risk and without recourse for their stolen funds.