Tyree Stehle, a disabled Texas woman who relies on SNAP benefits to help pay for groceries, says thieves drained her monthly food assistance down to just 30 cents, leaving her and her husband scrambling to eat. She typically receives $298 on the ninth of each month, but this time her card showed SNAP transactions totaling $297.70 that she says she never made.
According to KHOU 11, Stehle, who has been disabled since 2013, found transactions recorded in Minnesota, Brooklyn and the Bronx — nowhere near her home. She now has a new card and PIN, and she freezes her account before and after every grocery trip, hoping to avoid becoming a repeat target.
Her ordeal mirrors a pattern playing out across Texas. The state still uses magnetic-stripe technology on its EBT cards, the same 1960s-era format that, as ProPublica notes, skimmers can easily read. Thieves capture that data and clone it onto blank cards to steal benefits, often from recipients in other states, according to FOX 26 Houston, which reported that skimming devices first appeared on Texas EBT cards back in February 2022.
A Federal Safety Net That Ran Out
For years, a federal program allowed states to reimburse SNAP theft victims, but that authority ended on Dec. 20, 2024. Benefits stolen on or after Dec. 21, 2024 are no longer eligible for replacement under the federal program, a cutoff confirmed by the Food and Nutrition Service, USDA.
Texas Health and Human Services has received $29,387,346 in requests to replace stolen SNAP benefits through Sept. 7, 2026, per agency records, and has replaced $16,315,348 of that total. Of 1,836 requests filed after the federal replacement program ended, the agency denied 1,834 of them.
HHS has acknowledged that SNAP card skimming remains a persistent problem nationwide, including in Texas. The same KFDM reporting found that Texas HHSC policy states benefits taken through skimming, cloning or other fraudulent methods are not replaced.
Other Texans Report Similar Losses
Stehle is far from alone. A South Houston woman told FOX 26 she spent about $40 from a newly loaded card at two stores before waking up the next morning to find her balance at zero. A Southeast Texas recipient told KFDM his benefits were deposited on Sept. 5, 2026, but the money was gone by the next morning, while a Jefferson County recipient said he receives about $140 a month and watched his account show purchases in California, where he said he had not been.
Nationally, the numbers behind these individual stories are staggering. ProPublica reported that $470 million in SNAP benefits was stolen electronically in 2025, affecting more than 990,000 households that received food assistance that year. In Texas alone, 15,165 claims for stolen SNAP benefits were filed in just the first three months of 2025, per FOX 26.
Texas Looks At Chip Cards, But No Timeline Yet
Texas HHSC says it is researching chip-enabled cards to better protect Lone Star cardholders from fraud, and recommends that recipients monitor transactions, change PINs regularly, and lock their cards between purchases. Stehle said she believes Texas should do more to protect people who rely on assistance.
Elsewhere, a card upgrade has already shown results. In Lynchburg, Virginia, reported SNAP theft fell sharply after new cards rolled out in mid-September 2026, according to WSET. Those cards add an expiration date, a three-digit security code and a PIN, and let recipients tap instead of swipe. A Lynchburg Human Services supervisor said the department has not received a single report of SNAP fraud involving one of the new chip cards.
What Texans Can Do If They Suspect Fraud
HHS recommends anyone who suspects card fraud call the Lone Star Help Desk at 800-777-7328 to cancel the card and change the PIN. The agency also suggests calling 211, choosing a language and then option 3 to report suspected SNAP fraud, or option 1 for referrals to local food pantries and community services through Texas 211.
Recipients can also use the Your Texas Benefits website or app to check transactions, change PINs and lock their cards, and HHS encourages victims to contact an HHS-certified community partner for additional benefits and local food resources, which can be found through the Texas Community Partner Program. Feeding Texas also provides local food bank and food assistance resources for those in need. Texas HHS offers further fraud-prevention guidance through its Office of Inspector General and its Lone Star Card fraud awareness materials.
