Gov. Laura Kelly announced Friday that her administration has reached an agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture to protect Kansans’ personal data from being shared with foreign governments and to ensure compliance with state and federal privacy laws governing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Under the agreement, the USDA will cancel its disallowance letter and end efforts to withhold Kansas’ SNAP administrative funding after the state shares data under terms negotiated by the Kansas Department for Children and Families.
“The USDA’s decision to adhere to the DCF’s terms ensures that Kansans’ private, personal information, including full Social Security numbers, will not be shared with foreign governments,” Kelly said in a statement. “Kansas has complied with federal and state laws throughout this entire process and all we have wanted is for the USDA to do the same.”
State officials said the agreement resolves a dispute that began after the USDA requested extensive personal information on Kansans who have received or applied for SNAP benefits during the past five years. According to the governor’s office, the original request included provisions that would have allowed personal information — including full Social Security numbers and dates of birth — to be shared with foreign governments.
Kelly and her administration maintained that Kansas could not legally comply with the request until concerns about data protection were addressed. State officials cited confidentiality requirements under the federal Food and Nutrition Act and the Kansas Cybersecurity Act.
After the USDA rejected DCF’s corrective action proposal in September 2025, the agency issued a disallowance letter seeking to withhold $10.4 million in SNAP administrative funding. DCF appealed the decision, a move that immediately prevented the funding from being withheld.
The state has not lost any SNAP administrative funding during the dispute, and the program has continued operating without interruption, officials said.
With the new agreement in place, Kansas officials said data sharing can proceed under terms that safeguard personally identifiable information and comply with both state and federal law.