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Democratic-led states sued the Trump administration on Monday over concerns it will soon hand immigration authorities access to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients’ personal data.
It’s the latest legal challenge that accuses the Trump administration of violating federal privacy laws to collect data on welfare recipients.
The Trump administration defends the data sharing as necessary to combat fraud. The states say it’s an effort to target the program and aid immigration enforcement.
“This Administration has used every means at its disposal to erode federal confidentiality protections and deploy unsubstantiated allegations of ‘fraud’ in order to target Plaintiff States’ antipoverty programs, TANF included,” the lawsuit reads.
TANF, created in 1996 as an overhaul of federal anti-poverty programs, provides billions of dollars each year to states to assist low-income families with children. States have flexibility in distributing the grants.
The lawsuit challenges a June 23 legal notice that expands how the federal government can use TANF data.
The states described it as an “extravagant claims of authority” and a “gross breach of personal privacy” that could allow immigration authorities access to Social Security numbers and other sensitive information. They argued it violates multiple laws that limit how the government can share personal data.
The Hill has reached out for comment to the Administration for Children and Families, the federal office that oversees the program.
The suit is joined by roughly two dozen Democratic-controlled states, led by attorneys general in California, New York and Washington, D.C.
“Instead of helping families struggling with the rising cost of living, this administration is trying to turn antipoverty programs against the people they’re supposed to serve,” New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) said in a statement.
“TANF funds provide critical assistance to help families put food on the table, find safe housing, and make ends meet, but this administration is weaponizing TANF to illegally use millions of people’s most private personal information.”
Democratic-controlled states have previously launched legal challenges to the administration’s data-sharing efforts concerning Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
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