by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine In an article published Monday (August 4, 2025) by Peter Hirschfeld at Vermont Public, the Scott administration has delivered personal information on Vermont SNAP beneficiaries to the federal government as demanded by the Trump administration (see USDA memo below). As Hirschfeld reported, both state officials and food advocates in Vermont felt that potential retribution by the federal government was too severe to challenge the request. About 64,000 Vermonters are served by SNAP, or nearly 10 percent of the state's population.
Hirschfeld reported that Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark would have supported the Scott administration if it had fought the order because the SNAP data is legally required to be kept private. Twenty other states have challenged the order. Clark said it would be up to the Scott administration to enlist her office to fight the order. Clark has filed several suits, in conjunction with other attorneys general, against Trump Administration orders, including last week regarding Planned Parenthood funding.
Vermont Public subsequently reported that the Agency of Human Services confirmed that it shared the personal information of approximately 140,000 SNAP recipients with the USDA because the data request was for the last five years.
In response to the news, Vermont Treasurer Mike Pieciak issued this statement Tuesday afternoon (August 5,2025): "It was wrong for the Trump Administration to request this information.
“It was wrong for Vermont to voluntarily turn it over. 20 other states determined this request is illegal and are fighting back. Vermont’s attorney general agreed and was ready to join that fight.
“64,000 Vermonters, 1 in 10 of our neighbors, rely on SNAP to keep their families fed. They will now need to worry about persecution and surveillance from the Trump Administration because they chose to trust the state government to protect their data.
“I’m concerned that this breach of public trust will discourage Vermonters from signing up for the programs they need.
“I also share many Vermonters’ concern over how and why this decision was made. Capitulating to the Trump Administration will not keep Vermonters safe from their harmful agenda. The President’s threats are often hollow and they do not withstand legal scrutiny. But the choice not to fight will have real and immediate consequences for Vermonters.
“Vermont elected leaders must stand up to protect the most vulnerable. Our office is entrusted with sensitive data from tens of thousands of Vermonters, and we will take every measure to protect their privacy from the Trump administration in Washington.”
Governor's office on Tuesday evening (August 5, 2025) followed up with the following statement:
"Although the federal government’s approach has been unnecessarily political, the bottom line is, this is a federal benefit. The federal government is legally entitled to this information and has been for much of the last decade.
"Here are the facts:
- All information provided to the federal government is information states are required to provide in accordance with the USDA’s notice in the Federal Register published June 23, 2025, pursuant to the federal Privacy Act of 1974.
- A law was also passed through a bipartisan effort in Congress in 2018, with unanimous support from Vermont’s congressional delegation, clarifying the government’s right to this information.
- There is no conflict with state law, and simply objecting to this request for the sake of political resistance could put the SNAP benefits of thousands of Vermont’s most vulnerable at risk.
"When there is clear evidence of harm to Vermonters, the Scott Administration will continue to push back against such decisions and requests. Despite all the political drama on this issue, this is not one of those moments. Again, the facts matter. And the facts here are clear: everything we have provided to the federal government is within the limits of long-established law."
3SquaresVT is Vermont’s name for the federal food assistance program called SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). This program was commonly known as "food stamps." 3SquaresVT benefits are accepted at grocery stores, convenience stores, and many farmers markets. Benefits are distributed on an EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) card, which works like a debit card.
United States Department of Agriculture
Washington, D.C. 20250
July 23, 2025
Dear State agency Directors,
On May 6, 2025, state agencies were advised of the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) intent to implement President Trump’s March 20, 2025, Executive Order 14243, Stopping Waste, Fraud, and Abuse by Eliminating Information Silos through state data sharing to the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). In the May 6, 2025, memo, states were advised that the USDA/FNS was working with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payment processors to assist with data collection. As requested by state agencies, states are welcome to determine the most appropriate and feasible method to share the requested data with FNS. State agencies can work through their payment processor, a vendor of their own choosing, or with their State Information Technology team.
Data Elements
The requested data elements are for individuals who have received, are currently receiving, or have applied to receive SNAP benefits from Jan. 1, 2020, through present date. Requested data elements shall include records sufficient to identify individuals as applicants for, or recipients of, SNAP benefits, including but not limited to all household group members names, dates of birth, social security numbers, residential and mailing addresses used or provided, as well as all data records used to determine eligibility or ineligibility. It is understood that these data records will vary household to household, and may include earned and unearned income, absent parent(s), and other data used in the determination process. Please do not include supporting documents or case comments.
Additionally, transactional records from each household are also requested, and must be sufficient to calculate the total dollar value of SNAP received by recipients over time, with the ability to filter benefits received by date ranges, as well as SNAP usage and retailer data.
Data Transmission
Each state agency shall transmit data to FNS via the platform called Box. Once you identify the individual who will be responsible for transmitting the data for your state agency, please send their name, title, and email address to [email protected]. The state agency identified contact will then receive an email for account creation and access for data transmission.
Box is a secure platform which employs various security measures, including encryption, access controls, and compliance features to handle the sensitive data that States will be transmitting.
Data shall be transmitted to FNS no later than Wednesday, July 30, 2025.
Follow-Up Steps
Upon completion of data analysis, FNS will follow up with state agencies in respect to any applicable next steps of reconciliation. For questions related to the required data elements and/or assistance with the transmission of data, please send inquiries to [email protected]. We look forward to expanding this partnership with our state partners to ensure and enhance program integrity.
Sincerely,
Gina Brand
Senior Policy Advisor for Integrity
United States Department of Agriculture
Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services
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