Multiple anti-hunger and consumer protection organizations sent this letter to Rohit Chopra, Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, urging the CFPB to cover Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) accounts under Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. These accounts, used to distribute SNAP and other public benefits, need to be included in the rulemaking to ensure equal access to consumer protection law.

Excluding EBT accounts from personal financial data rights and associated consumer protections, or delaying the population’s coverage to a future rulemaking, would reinforce a two-tier financial services system. This would result in fewer rights and consumer protections for people who have low incomes and who may have less access to traditional banking services when compared with consumers who have higher incomes. Exclusing EBT accounts is inequitable and will exacerbate hardship for people living in poverty.

Download the letter here.