14 States Sue Over New Food Stamp Restrictions

Politico reports:

A coalition that includes attorneys general in 14 states, the District of Columbia and New York City are suing the Agriculture Department over a plan to impose stricter work requirements on millions of food stamp recipients.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday by mostly Democratic-led states, argues that USDA unlawfully limited states’ discretion to exempt certain adults from work requirements for an extended period of time based on local employment conditions.

The USDA’s new rule would make it more difficult, in part by lowering the unemployment rate required to qualify for them. USDA estimates that the change will save about $5.5 billion over five years.