SNAP Benefits Trafficking

SNAP Benefits Trafficking remains the most serious offense an EBT retailer can be accused of. Interestingly, it is also the most common SNAP violation that the USDA charges. If you have been accused of trafficking in SNAP benefits at your store, the sanctions come harsh and swift, and criminal charges are a strong possibility. It is important to understand that a trafficking allegation is much more than just a claim that your store misused a customer’s EBT card. Examples of things you cannot sell, are glass bongs, red wine, tequila, liquor, etc.

Understanding SNAP Trafficking

Trafficking is characterized as any illegal exchange of SNAP benefits. Such a crime can take many different forms and the USDA’s definition encompasses six different kinds of trafficking activities:

• Buying/Selling/Stealing an EBT card or its account and/or PIN number for cash or other items of value;
• Swapping firearms, ammunition, explosives or drugs for SNAP funds or for an EBT card;
• Buying items that have a bottle refund, discarding the contents and exchanging the bottle for the refund;
• Buying food with an EBT card for resale to someone else for cash;
• If an SNAP participant purchases food with their EBT card, then exchanges it to a SNAP retailer store for cash or credit, that’s trafficking.
• Disbursing “cash back” on an EBT transaction, regardless of whether or not the proprietor of the store or any of its employees benefit financially from the transaction.

How do I Know if I Have Been Charged with Trafficking?

There are three ways that grocery store owners can be charged with trafficking. All three involve the receipt of a letter. The “Charge Letter”, as it is called, is delivered by UPS overnight from the FNS. This letter spells out the specific allegations being charged against your store. The most common trafficking charge is referred to as an “EBT” case. EBT is short for Electronic Benefit Transfer, but it is a data analysis case. The Charge Letter looks like this:

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Legal Scenario: What Would You Do?

Scenario

You own a small grocery store and a USDA investigator just informed you that undercover agents conducted multiple transactions at your location where SNAP benefits were exchanged for cash instead of eligible food items. The investigator says your store is being permanently disqualified from the SNAP program and that the case has been referred to the U.S. Attorney's office for criminal prosecution.

What kind of penalties am I facing for SNAP trafficking, and is there any way to save my store's authorization?

Attorney's Answer

SNAP benefits trafficking is a serious federal offense under 7 U.S.C. § 2024, carrying penalties of up to 20 years in prison and fines up to $250,000 for each count. The USDA's Food and Nutrition Service typically imposes permanent disqualification from the SNAP program for trafficking violations under 7 C.F.R. § 278.6, though in limited circumstances a civil money penalty may be imposed instead if your store meets certain criteria as the sole source of food in a community. An experienced attorney can challenge the sufficiency of the USDA's evidence, negotiate with federal prosecutors to reduce or dismiss criminal charges, and pursue an administrative review of the disqualification through the USDA's appeals process. Time is critical because you have only 10 days from receiving the charge letter to request administrative review of your store's disqualification.

This is general information only. Contact us for advice specific to your situation.

SNAP Trafficking Charge Letter