Over 20 States Sue Trump Administration to Block Sharing of TANF Recipients' Data with Immigration Authorities

On August 3, 2026, a coalition of over 20 Democratic-led states, led by California, New York, and Washington, D.C., sued the Trump administration to block an August 11 policy allowing the federal government to share personal data of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients with immigration authorities. Concurrently, California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a separate lawsuit to block the administration's new 10% to 12.5% global tariffs. The White House defended the data sharing as a fraud-prevention measure and the tariffs as a tool against forced labor.

California lawsuits against Trump administration

• ▪California Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed a total of 82 lawsuits against the current Trump administration.
• ▪California co-led a coalition of over 20 Democratic-led states in a separate lawsuit to block the federal sharing of low-income families' data.

Trump tariff legal challenges

• ▪California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit on August 3, 2026, to block President Donald Trump's latest round of international tariffs.
• ▪The Trump administration justified the new tariffs under a global trade law aimed at combating forced labor.
• ▪The challenged tariffs impose levies of 10% to 12.5% on more than 80 countries, including Canada, Mexico, and the European Union.

TANF data sharing with ICE

• ▪The challenged policy, announced on June 23, 2026, by the Administration for Children and Families, was scheduled to take effect on August 11, 2026.
• ▪A coalition of over 20 states, the District of Columbia, and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania sued the Trump administration on August 3, 2026, to block a data-sharing policy for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.
• ▪The policy allows the Department of Health and Human Services to share Temporary Assistance for Needy Families recipients' Social Security numbers, immigration status, marital status, and income with the Department of Homeland Security.
• ▪Advocacy groups Make the Road States, Common Cause, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a separate lawsuit in Brooklyn federal court challenging the policy under the Privacy Act.

Federal benefit recipient data sharing

• ▪Democratic-led states have previously filed lawsuits to block Trump administration data-sharing efforts concerning Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and IRS taxpayer data.
• ▪The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program provides over $16 billion annually in federal grants to states to assist low-income families.

White House policy defense

• ▪White House spokesman Kush Desai defended the new tariffs as a legally durable tool to address foreign countries' failure to prohibit goods produced with forced labor.
• ▪The Trump administration defended the data-sharing policy as a necessary measure to reduce waste and fraud and to verify that states are checking recipients' citizenship or immigration status.
• ▪White House spokesman Kush Desai dismissed the data-sharing lawsuit, claiming Democrats are prioritizing illegal immigrants over American citizens receiving taxpayer-funded benefits.