Benefits Warning as Millions of Dollars at Risk

New York lawmakers have warned that millions of dollars in SNAP benefits are being stolen from electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards.

State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani has warned that there have been 61,000 instances of EBT card fraud in the past six months alone, or $17 million in lost benefits. Mamdani, who represents New York's 36th district, told Gothamist the issue is a "crisis" in his area. Newsweek has contacted Mamdani's office via email for comment outside normal working hours.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits are administered to recipients through EBT cards, which are loaded with money each month to use in participating stores across the country. When an EBT card is used, thieves are able to copy its information and PIN using a covert device secretly installed on the reader, according to Mamdani.

A representative for New York Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas, who has also raised concerns about high levels of EBT theft, told Newsweek that she is working on legislation that would see magnet stripe cards replaced with chip cards in an effort to bring down fraud.

She said: "Last year, I worked on passing one of my bills, which would allow our state to reimburse New Yorkers who have been victims of public benefits skimming and there was some interest in doing so.

"Unfortunately, in the end, we did not see an adequate investment of state dollars by the governor to address this issue, which is impacting families every day and has not slowed down.

"I urge the legislature to pass my bill, A4096, to replace the current magnet stripe cards with EMV cards and the governor to sign it into law. This would result in decreased theft. New Yorkers are going hungry, and it is time we address this once and for all and stop the spending of dollars to address this with band-aids."

EMV cards are smart payment cards and stands for Europay, Mastercard and Visa, the three companies that created the standard.

On February 19 González-Rojas posted on X, formerly Twitter: "Last year I intro'd legislation, A4096 to replace EBT magnet stripe cards with chip cards, which decrease fraud by over 87 percent. Public benefits skimming hasn't stopped. We need a long-term solution." Newsweek has contacted González-Rojas for further details on the proposed legislation via email outside normal working hours.

In an effort to modernize the SNAP scheme, a 2023 a pilot was initiated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to trial the use of mobile contactless technology when paying for food using SNAP benefits. The pilot was available for SNAP participants in Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, and Oklahoma.

"Digital wallets are changing the way we pay for everything, including groceries. We want to ensure SNAP leverages the latest technology to improve access to benefits, reduce fraud, and provide a better overall experience for the families we serve," Stacy Dean, USDA deputy undersecretary for food, nutrition, and consumer services said at the time.

Under current legislation in New York, stolen SNAP funds can only be reimbursed by the state two times if they have been stolen via phishing, skimming, or card cloning. The wait time for reimbursement is 30 days.

Mamdani said: "This is just one instance of a long legacy of the state seeking to put restrictions and bureaucratic difficulties upon the backs of working-class New Yorkers."

Have you had your benefits stolen? Get in touch with a.higham@newsweek.com.

Update, 2/22/2014 8:28 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional comment from González-Rojas.