Millions of dollars in SNAP benefits stolen from Texans. But state, feds won’t share who’s taking them

HOUSTON – For some families in Texas, the monthly deposit of SNAP benefits onto their Lone Star card is the only way they can put food on the table.

In March alone, more than 3.56 million Texans relied on SNAP money to help them make it through the month.

But just like how crooks target your debit or credit card, they’re stealing SNAP benefits directly from those who need it most through a crime known as SNAP Skimming.

Up until last December, if SNAP benefits were stolen, they were eligible for replacement.

That stopped when federal funding dried up.

TAKE ACTION: Want to give your thoughts to your elected representative? Here’s who to call.

What are SNAP benefits?

SNAP stands for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps.

It’s a federally funded program, overseen by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service.

The benefits loaded monthly onto a card, like a debit card, can be used to buy a variety of nutritious foods, including fresh, frozen, and canned fruits and vegetables, as well as meat, poultry, and fish.

Recipients can also purchase dairy products, bread, rice, pasta, and snack foods like chips and cookies.

However, SNAP benefits cannot be used for non-food items, alcohol, hot prepared foods, or vitamins and supplements.

These benefits are accepted at authorized retailers, including grocery stores and farmers’ markets, helping low-income families access healthy food options.

Each state then handles the distribution and management of SNAP benefits.

More than 3.5 million Texans receive SNAP benefits

Texans who receive SNAP benefits are all around us. They could be your family, your friends or even your neighbors

In Texas, to qualify for SNAP benefits, households need to meet certain income limits based on the federal poverty level, with gross monthly income generally at or below 130%.

The rules also consider household size, so larger families can qualify for higher income thresholds.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens or legal non-citizens living in Texas, and able-bodied adults aged 18 to 49 need to meet work requirements.

In March, there were 3,564,141 Texans who received SNAP benefits. Those payments loaded onto Lone Star cards totaled $615,813,525. That’s just for March.

Here’s a look at how the Houston metro’s SNAP benefits in March 2025:

(Source: Texas Health and Human Services)

Surge in SNAP skimming

There’s been an influx of SNAP skimming reports flooding the 2 Helps You inbox in recent weeks.

While sometimes a scam is simple a one-off scam, there’s a common theme among many of the reports being investigated by KPRC 2.

Each of the accounts that had their accounts skimmed ended up being left with just a few dollars. The transactions that stole the money from the account were all from out of state, most New York City.

The criminals behind the operation are likely taking stolen or skimmed SNAP benefit card information and loading it onto another card.

The transactions pop up as a series of numbers on the Your Texas Benefits app. But when you dig a little bit deeper on the website portal, you can see more information about the specific transaction, including where the card was swiped.

A retailer we’ve seen more than once on a transaction summary is Gourmet Market & Bagel in New York City.

That’s more than 1,400 miles away from Houston. None people with accounts that have transactions for the New York City food market visited the location, they say.

A quick look at the Google reviews reveals a number of people from across the country who have had their SNAP benefits stolen and used here.

Micaela Macias: “This location is stealing peoples food stamps in Houston, Texas”

William Rice: “This place is up to something with a big fraud scheme - stole my EBT funds 04/04/2025. Hope you enjoy leaving families starving there no replacements and people need to eat like this place needs investigation.”

L B: “This store and Simply Gourmet & Bagels in the Bronx are definitely up to something shady. On March 7th at 12:45 a.m., my EBT card was rejected at this store (but still attempted), and then—at the exact same time—someone successfully pulled money off my card at Simply Gourmet & Bagels in another part of the city. There’s no way a person could physically get to another store in 30 seconds, which means there’s a bigger scam happening here.How do I know the stores are involved? Because I have my card on me. This means these shops are either illegally allowing people to punch in stolen EBT card numbers or they’re part of something even bigger. If your funds ever go missing, check your transaction history—if these stores show up, you might have been scammed."

Aliya J: “Live in Miami and they robbed my food stamp this store is a front for scamming.”

KPRC 2’s Gage Goulding called the market, but wasn’t able to reach any one with answers.

Fighting for your taxpayer dollars

With fraud appearing to run rampant throughout the SNAP system in Texas and across the country, what are the state and federal governments doing to protect your taxpayer dollars?

They tell us they’re fighting for them, but they won’t tell us how.

Let’s start with Texas.

Here in the Lone Star State, the Texas Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General is responsible for probing reports of stolen SNAP benefits.

During the last state fiscal year, September 1, 2023 through August 31, 2024, the state investigated 368 cases involving benefit theft or trafficking.

Of those, 234 cases were substantiated with 206 being submitted to the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service.

A total of 28 cases were sent for criminal prosecution.

During the last fiscal year, the state EBT Trafficking Unit recovered $754,349 in stolen benefits with another $2.6 million in potential recovery, which are waiting for prosecution or administrative hearings.

KPRC 2 asked for specific transaction data for another retailer, Finca Fresh Market in New York City, whose transactions led to Claudette Merchan’t SNAP benefit account being wiped out, seeking to see if the retailer has a history of transactions with the state that could raise a red flag.

When asked, the state wouldn’t open up about specifics.

“As a matter of policy, the Texas Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (Texas HHS-OIG) does not confirm or deny the existence of specific investigations,” a Texas Health and Human Services spokesperson said. “Speaking broadly, the Texas HHS-OIG does not have jurisdiction to investigate SNAP retailers outside of Texas. When an out-of-state retailer is implicated, we refer the case to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General (USDA-OIG). Texas cannot disqualify or otherwise block the use of SNAP benefits at any retailer, in-state or out-of-state. The USDA Food and Nutrition Service (USDA-FNS) is solely responsible for authorizing and disqualifying retailers. The Texas HHS-OIG does investigate SNAP retailers in Texas who are accused of EBT theft and trafficking. If allegations against a retailer are substantiated, the case may be submitted to the local district attorney’s office for criminal prosecution or to USDA-FNS for administrative sanction or disqualification.”

The same goes for the federal government. The USDA playing their cards closer to their chest than the State of Texas.

KPRC 2 asked the USDA the exact same questions to the state and USDA.

“Please be advised that the data that you are requesting cannot be disclosed, as it is proprietary information,” a USDA spokesperson wrote back.

So, what are they doing to protect SNAP benefits and ultimately your taxpayer dollars?

“FNS continues to explore ways to improve security for SNAP EBT card payments. On our webpage Addressing Stolen SNAP Benefits, we provide tips and resources SNAP participants, State Agencies, and SNAP Retailers can take to help mitigate SNAP benefit theft," the USDA wrote to KPRC 2. “FNS is working closely with our state and federal partners, SNAP retailers, EBT processors, and other industry experts to protect SNAP benefits and combat SNAP fraud. Many state agencies are pursuing enhanced card security options to protect SNAP recipients from card skimming schemes, as outlined in FNS’s guidance. State agencies have also initiated outreach campaigns to educate SNAP recipients on ways they can protect themselves. FNS continues to work with stakeholders, including states, EBT processors and law enforcement to explore various strategies for addressing benefit theft."

READ THE FULL RESPONSE:

It’s a big promise of protecting taxpayer money.

However, when asked, the federal government would not provide specific data requested as to where money is being spent, specifically at retailers with a pattern of stolen benefits being used.

Have you had your SNAP benefits stolen? KPRC 2 would like to hear from you.

Share your story with us at 2 Helps You.