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Federal Ruling Allows Class Action Suit for Food Stamp Application Delays

U.S. Department of Agriculture
/
Creative Commons

The state hasn't reached its mandated goals for processing food stamp applications.

Advocates for the poor have argued that the state takes too long to process food stamp applications, and that people should have a right to sue. State attorneys have pushed back. But last week, a federal appellate court ruled that applicants can in fact file a class action against the state. 

"When we filed the case in March of 2012, Connecticut was ranked last in the country in processing food stamps," said Lucy Potter, a staff attorney with Greater Hartford Legal Aid. 

Potter said a judge in 2012 found that as much as 40 percent of the state's food stamp applications were being processed late. The deadline is seven days for urgent cases, and 30 days for other cases. Potter said urgent case are when someone’s rent and utilities add up to more than their income. 

All together, over 400,000 people get assistance each year to buy food. Benefits can be used at grocery and convenience stores and some farmers markets. 

Potter said the state has improved its timeliness since her agency filed suit back in 2012. Now, Potter said an overwhelming majority of the applications are completed in time. Still, the state hasn't reached its mandated goals.

"They're at like 87 percent for seven-day cases, and about 94 percent for 30-day cases," Potter said. "For three years they've been fighting us and also trying to comply. They've made significant progress." 

In an email, a spokesman for the state Department of Social Services said his agency is reviewing the appellate court’s decision.  But it also said the state has made “tremendous improvement” when it comes to processing food stamp applications

Potter said that doing better isn’t necessarily good enough, and this latest legal victory promises an avenue for legal relief.

Jeff Cohen started in newspapers in 2001 and joined Connecticut Public in 2010, where he worked as a reporter and fill-in host. In 2017, he was named news director. Then, in 2022, he became a senior enterprise reporter.

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