Kentucky’s Aggressive SNAP Disqualifications Face Legal Scrutiny Over Reliance on Flawed Data
A surge in disqualifications from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Kentucky is raising concerns about the state’s reliance on transactional data to prove fraud, with legal experts arguing the practice often leads to unjust denials of benefits.
A single mother in Salyersville, kentucky, learned this firsthand in 2020 when her SNAP benefits were revoked after state investigators flagged her shopping patterns as suspicious. The state alleged multiple same-day purchases, attempted overdrafts, invalid PIN entries, and “whole-dollar” transactions – patterns they deemed indicative of selling benefits, or “trafficking.” The woman explained she worked at the store and frequently enough purchased lunch there before grocery shopping, and her child occasionally used her card. Despite this explanation, an administrative hearing officer terminated her benefits based solely on the shopping patterns. She successfully sued to regain her benefits, with Franklin County Judge Thomas Wingate ruling in 2023 that “it is draconian to take away SNAP benefits from a single mother without clear and convincing evidence that intentional trafficking was occurring during a time when food scarcity is so prevalent.”
Her case is emblematic of a broader trend. Over the past five years, the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services has pursued hundreds of fraud cases largely based on transactional data, aiming to revoke food benefits. Judges, lawyers, and legal experts contend that such evidence is frequently enough insufficient to prove wrongdoing. Kentucky Public Radio’s review of administrative hearing decisions and court documents reveals a pattern of the cabinet relying on shopping patterns to establish “trafficking” without presenting additional evidence.
Kentucky now ranks second in the nation for per-capita administrative disqualifications from SNAP, trailing only Florida, according to 2023 federal data. Disqualifications have dramatically increased in the last decade, rising from under 100 in 2015 to over 1,800 in 2023. As of January 2024, more than 300 individuals have faced accusations of selling or misusing benefits.
While a Franklin County judge ordered the cabinet in 2023 to cease disqualifying individuals based solely on transactional data, at least three lawsuits allege the agency continues this practice. “Transactional data alone cannot prove intent to commit fraud nor show the actual result of any individual transaction,” explained University of Kentucky law professor Cory Dodds. “I’m not saying that folks didn’t do it, didn’t commit the fraud, but I don’t think the cabinet in a lot of these cases has met their burden of proof, either.”
The state’s approach frequently enough pressures recipients to waive their right to a hearing. Kentuckians receive notices detailing alleged suspicious activity and are asked to voluntarily accept punishment – typically a one-year SNAP ban and repayment of the disputed amount – by waiving a hearing.These cases frequently involve small sums of money; records show over 900 individuals have been disqualified for “trafficking” or misuse involving less than $1,000 since 2022, with one case involving a disputed amount of just 14 cents. By 2023, almost a quarter of all disqualifications were secured thru waivers. lawsuits allege some individuals did not fully understand the consequences of these waivers and were encouraged to sign them by officials.
Kentucky Public Radio reviewed over two dozen cases since 2020 where the cabinet accused individuals of trafficking based solely on spending patterns, even when participants denied the allegations or did not respond – and without any other supporting evidence. Kendra Ste
