Alabama SNAP Recipients Say Fraud Protection Isn’t Enough

Something that may not be getting a lot of buzz in Alabama is EBT benefits. According to this report, there were 752,200 Alabama residents, or 15% of the state's population, who received help from the SNAP or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

There are reports of many Alabamians who receive SNAP benefits having their benefits stolen.

From May 2023 to December 20, 2024, Alabama DHR replaced $15.9 million of SNAP benefits due to EBT fraud. From October to December 20, 2024, over 26,000 reimbursements were approved for $10.5 million. That's a lot of money being stolen.

Recently, an Alabama resident reached out in hopes of bringing awareness to the ongoing issue of fraud when it comes to these benefits.

Families are losing millions of dollars in EBT benefits to fraud, and the state has stopped reimbursing us.

On September 7th, my entire $1,158 in benefits was stolen. At DHR, I was told there’s no reimbursement and no real protection in place—just to lock my card and change my PIN. That doesn’t work.

I am a single mom of four boys, and while I work, I rely on benefits to help feed my family. Now I’m having to work extra gig jobs on my days off to cover what was stolen. Families across the state are in the same position, but it’s not being talked about anymore.

This deserves attention. Please use your platform to help spread awareness and put pressure on leaders to take action.

Although there are reports of Alabama DHR reimbursing SNAP funds to Alabama residents, as this mother of 4 said, Alabama DHR isn't currently replacing stolen funds.

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“The very best thing our SNAP clients can do is lock their card when they aren’t using it,” said Alabama DHR Commissioner Nancy Buckner. “With the funds being stolen by utilizing out of state EBT terminals, we believe using our newest feature on ConnectEBT and locking the EBT card will truly combat this type of fraud."

EBT cardholders may also sign up for alerts through the ConnectEBT app and website.  These alerts include account activity alerts through the app, text, and/or email.