Nationwide SNAP Violation Lawyers

Jeffersonville Snap Violation Lawyers

If you’re a retailer who accepts EBT at your retail store, then may have gotten a notice from the USDA. This notification is probably a SNAP violation notice, which is claiming you are in violation of the SNAP program. The USDA will include proof to the SNAP violation notice, and it will contain transactions that occurred at your retail store that the government claims violates one or more categories of violations.

After you get a SNAP violation letter, you must contact our law firm. Remember, you have only ten days to respond to the letter. If you choose to ignore, the USDA will terminate/suspend your grocery store’s ability to take EBT.

About The Program

The SNAP program provides families with a certain amount of money each month. These benefits are distributed through an EBT card. The SNAP benefits on this card cannot legally be used for general usage, and they cannot be used for fraudulent cash back services. The cards took over for food stamps in the 1990’s and are issued by each state individually where the consumer lives. The program is run on a nationwide level by the federal government.

The SNAP program and it’s benefits are under handled by the US Code and the Code of Federal Regulations. The USDA FNS agency enforces the regulations and runs the program.

What does it mean to have a SNAP violation

Snap violations happen if and when a store is in violation of the rules below.

The grocery store was involved intrafficking SNAP benefits. Examples of this is fraudulently accepting benefits, or theft of the benefits.

Your grocery store took SNAP benefits in exchange for nonfood items like alcohol, tobacco, or other goods.

The store submitted incorrect information on your retail stores application to accept EBT benefits.

Your store redeemed more EBT food stamps than actual food sales at the same time.

Your employees accepted SNAP benefits from someone who isn’t allowed to use them.

How to defend your store against a SNAP violation

Our law firm has immense experience managing SNAP appeals letters. Our team of attorneys can handle your SNAP violation process in all 3 phases of a SNAP action.

Sending the violation letter is the initial step which is going to be taken by USDA to remove your EBT license. This comes with no warning and can happen at any time. The SNAP violation letter contain details about alleged violations, but most of them will lay out violations, with an attachment of details. You have only 10 days to respond. After you hire our law firm, our lawyers take into their hands all of the communicationswith the USDA and for compiling all the necessary evidence, and drafting a response to the USDA.

Once the USDA reviews your answer to the SNAP violation letter, the USDA might still believe that your store has violated the rules. If that happens, they’ll will definitely send another letter which outlines the governments legal verdict to suspend or disqualify the store based on the accusations previously mentioned. You have 10 days to appeal this. If you choose not to, then you’ll be unable to protest the USDA decision. Once you hire our law firm, we’ll file the appeal to notify the USDA appeal the decision. Our lawyers gather necessary evidence, and we will draft generate the necessary appeals briefs which contains all of the case law, evidence, etc. which is critical to overturn the decision.

If the USDA refuses to override the legal decision, in the Administrative Review, our lawyers will file a Judicial review at the local Federal Court. The Judicial Appeal is like a normal case, where you’ll be able to do discovery, file motions, and have a trial. Our law firm can handle these cases in all 50 states.

SNAP Violations

As a food store retailer, there are many laws you have to adhere to for EBT. In most cases, many grocery store owners have no problems adhering to them. However, SNAP can be tricky. SNAP handles the Electronic Benefits Transfer Card, and has limitations. For example, people getting SNAP benefits cant buy electronic goods. As a retailer, if you violate the laws, you’ll probably get a SNAP violation letter. Snap violation penalties can result in severe fines. If it’s believed you did a major violation, then you may end up with either a permanent or temporary disqualification. In most cases, owners of grocery stores didn’t know the violations are even occurring. In many situations, unethical employees are misusing the SNAP EBT program. If you’re accused of a SNAP violation to discuss your case with a SNAP violation attorney to ensure sure you don’t have your benefits revoked.

When a SNAP violation letter is sent to your grocery store, you only have ten days to respond to the allegations. Your failure to respond will permanently crush your store. If you don’t respond the USDA will generate a verdict even if you don’t respond to the allegations. In the absence of a SNAP violation attorney, you cannot defend your store. Hiring a SNAP violation lawyer gives you a fighting change. Our SNAP appeals lawyers will discredit the decision of the USDA and fight any decision. The penalties imposed can expensive – to the tune of ten’s of thousands of dollars. The USDA on purpose does huge fines to curb violations. The USDA will look to see if you have a store compliance policy in place. It has to be in writing at the store and in effect at the time the allegations were filed.

The store owner also be able to prove the compliance policy was in existence before the allegations, and was not drafted after the violation letter. The USDA will also look to check if the owners benefited in any way from the fraud, or were aware of the violation. If the management was involved it can lead to disqualification.

We highly recommend any store owner that gets a violation letter consult with a SNAP violation attorney. Failure can result in negative consequences. The USDA is required by Congress to issue a disqualification for a period of up to 5 years. This can result in huge losses which are hard to recover from.