HONOLULU (KHON2) — On Oct. 28, a coalition of 23 attorneys general, including Attorney General Anne Lopez of Hawaiʻi, and three governors filed a lawsuit for the “unlawful suspension” of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
“The unlawful suspension of SNAP benefits jeopardizes food security for thousands of Hawaiʻi residents who rely on this lifeline every day,” Lopez said.
In 2025, over 160,000 people received SNAP benefits in Hawaiʻi each month — of those helped, about 27,910 were families and 62,647 keiki, according to the Hawaiʻi Department of the Attorney General.
Represented in the lawsuit are the attorneys general of the following 26 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.
The governors of Kansas, Kentucky and Pennsylvania have also joined the suit against the United States Department of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins as its secretary, U.S. Office of Management and Budget and Russell Vought as its director for suspending SNAP.
Between Oct. 1, 2024 and Sept. 30, 2025, the Hawaiʻi Department of Human Services issued over $57 million each month in SNAP benefits for individuals and families in Hawaiʻi, the Hawaiʻi Department of the Attorney General said.
“Our office is committed to protecting the rights of families and individuals who depend on this program,” Lopez said.
The coalition said they will also be requesting a temporary restraining order from the court for SNAP benefits to be immediately turned back on.
The federal government funds and determines the monthly amount of SNAP benefits, but states administer their programs and USDA “does not have the authority” to discontinue these benefits during the government shutdown, Lopez said.
“Suspending SNAP benefits in this manner is both contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act,” she said.
For more information on Hawaiʻi’s SNAP benefits and food resource information go to the Department of Human Services website.