San Francisco, California - The Trump administration's attempt to force states to supply the data of millions of food stamp recipients by threatening to cut off funding has been blocked by a federal judge.

District Judge Maxine Chesney in San Francisco on Thursday issued a preliminary injunction blocking the US Department of Agriculture from withholding Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.

The ruling stops the Trump administration from following through on its threat to cut off 22 Democratic states from food stamp funding unless they turn over the data of people using the program to feed their families.

Plaintiff states had asked Chesney to block the USDA from withholding funding after the administration continued to threaten states with cuts despite an earlier ruling blocking them from such action.

The USDA had, in turn, argued that its move was in the public interest because it was purportedly attempting to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in the SNAP program.

Chesney agreed with the states that the Trump administration's demands and threats were unlawful and that current data safety laws governing the USDA were insufficient.

In addition, the court found the balance of induced hardship on SNAP recipients and the plaintiff states, compared to the USDA's public interest argument, "tips in favor of plaintiff states."

"We won another court order protecting SNAP data for millions of vulnerable people and our immigrant communities," New York Attorney General Letitia James wrote on X in response to the court order.

"As our lawsuit continues, I'll keep fighting to ensure New York families can get access to the food assistance they need without fearing for their safety," James added.