The L.A. Times reports that the Trump administration is considering a plan that would allow states to require drug tests for some individuals who were receiving food stamp assistance.
The proposal, currently under review, would be targeted toward people who are "able-bodied" without dependents, and applying for speicalized jobs. Up to 5% of participants in the food stamp program SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) could be affected by the change according to an unnamed official with the administration.
Drug-testing food stamp recipients isn't a new idea. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker pushed to have food stamp recipients drug tested before they could recieve benefits. The USDA blocked the proposal in 2015, calling the idea "costly and cumbersome."
States are barred by federal law from imposing their own conditions on eligibility for food stamps. At least 20 states have introduced some form of screening for SNAP recipients according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Fifteen states have passed laws allowing them to drug-test recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, which is better known as welfare.
SNAP currently provides around 42 million people in the United States with food assistance.