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HRA says federal limits hobble city response to EBT skimming as council weighs anti‑fraud officer and victims fund
Summary
At a City Council hearing, HRA officials told the Committee on General Welfare they lack authority and transactional data to reimburse skimmed SNAP benefits after federal rules changed, while advocates and sponsors urged a city SNAP anti‑fraud officer and a state victims compensation fund alongside faster EMV chip rollout.
Scott French, administrator of the Human Resources Administration, told the City Council Committee on General Welfare that the city’s capacity to address electronic benefit transfer (EBT) skimming is constrained by federal and state rules and by the loss of federal reimbursement authority.
“At this point, unfortunately, no one can fix that and replace those benefits,” French said in testimony to the committee, explaining that a federal direction ended the city’s ability to collect applications to replace stolen SNAP benefits in February 2024. He said that during the earlier period when replacements were available the city verified roughly 131,810 claims and reimbursed about $50 million overall, most of it SNAP benefits.
Why it matters: Council sponsors and advocacy groups argued that stolen benefits have…
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