PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - Rhode Island has settled a class action lawsuit over its troubled food stamp benefits system, the state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union announced Monday.
The agreement signed by a federal judge requires the state to provide more information when seeking reimbursement for suspected overpayment of benefits, the civil rights group said.
The organization says the state has agreed to spell out the specific reasons for seeking repayment, as well as document how it calculated the alleged overpayment.
The state Department of Human Services, which administers the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, said the settlement “constitutes a compromise” but shouldn’t be “construed as an admission of any sort.”
The ACLU sued in December on behalf of Woonsocket resident Carmen Correa.
The organization said the state demanded Correa repay nearly $2,000 in benefits but didn’t provide her enough information to determine whether the overpayment was correct.
It was the ACLU’s third class-action lawsuit against the state over the public benefits system in recent years.
The state upgraded the computer system for the benefits in 2016 but there were numerous problems with the rollout of UHIP, including inaccurate benefit payments.
A federal judge had earlier temporarily barred the state from reducing benefits or demanding reimbursements from those suspected of receiving overpayments.
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