I’m writing to bring you an important update about our efforts to ensure access to SNAP benefits for vulnerable communities in Alaska.
In January, we filed a lawsuit against the State of Alaska over their failure to provide SNAP benefits to vulnerable communities. Now, we have reached an interim settlement with the State to put our litigation on hold for a temporary six-month period to allow Alaska’s Department of Health to resolve its SNAP backlog.
In return for placing our litigation on temporary hold, the State has agreed to extend certification periods, hire new workers, temporarily waive interviews and simplify documentation in order to halve its more than 10,000 person SNAP backlog within six months. The State has also agreed to jointly ask the Court to certify two of our plaintiff classes. If approved, this would enable our team to work to resolve these issues on behalf of thousands of affected Alaskans.
We believe that this six-month stay of litigation is the most efficient path forward for resolving problems and getting critical food benefits to vulnerable Alaskan families, and I’m proud of NCLEJ’s efforts to reach this interim settlement.
This is a clear example of how our high-impact litigation work can make a critical difference for America’s most marginalized communities. Our efforts are about dismantling institutional barriers to secure food benefits for those who need it most. Indigenous communities and other racial minorities in Alaska are particularly at risk of food insecurity because of language and geographic barriers, and this agreement by the State to focus on reducing its SNAP backlog will help alleviate hunger among those in greatest need.
The National Center for Law and Economic Justice advances racial and economic justice through ground-breaking impact litigation, policy advocacy, and support for grassroots organizing. We have provided legal representation and support since 1965.
