B 26-0367 Legislature · 26th Council Period (2025-2026)

Public Benefits Security Amendment Act of 2025

The Public Benefits Security Amendment Act of 2025 requires the District of Columbia's Department of Human Services (DHS) to replace vulnerable magnetic stripe EBT cards with secure microchipped cards by October 1, 2027, to prevent benefit theft. It directly affects SNAP (food assistance) and TANF (cash assistance) recipients, who currently lose millions annually to card skimming. The bill mandates DHS to restore stolen benefits after the card transition, ensuring residents don’t face food insecurity while waiting for assistance to be reinstated. This change aligns with federal recommendations and practices in states like California and Maryland, which have adopted similar chip-based security.

Issues: ✓ Technology

Bill status signed all 3 stages cleared

Introduction

Sep 2025

Committee Review

Dec 2025

Signed into Law

Apr 2026

Introduced Sep 24, 2025 Signed Apr 3, 2026

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What changed between versions

Engrossment → Enrollment · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was finalized as the Public Benefits Security Amendment Act of 2026, changing the enactment year from 2025 to 2026 and updating the citation for the implementing rules to reflect the new year. The core policy requirements remain the same: the Department of Human Services must issue EMV chip-enabled EBT cards by October 1, 2027, and must restore up to two months of benefits to victims of fraudulent theft if reported within six months.

TIMELINE

The bill's citation year was updated from 2025 to 2026, and the rule-making authority was updated to reference the 2026 version of the act.

DEFINITION

Minor wording changes were made to the definitions of 'Cloning', 'Skimming', and 'Theft' to improve clarity and consistency with existing laws.

REQUIREMENT

The reporting deadline for stolen benefits was extended from 45 days to 6 months, giving victims more time to report fraud.

The requirement for the Department to notify recipients of their right to a fair hearing was moved from the notification letter to a separate subsection of the law.

TECHNICAL

The bill was restructured to add a new section (584) instead of modifying an existing one (583), and the section numbering for definitions was adjusted to accommodate these changes.

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Full legislative history

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Committee

Amendments

Jan 6, 2026

Introduced

AMENDMENT (Frumin)

legislature

Dec 10, 2025

Legislature · Passed

Committee Mark-up of B26-0367 by the Human Services Committee

legislature

Oct 7, 2025

Committee

Referred to Committee on Human Services

legislature

Sep 24, 2025

Introduced

B26-0367 Introduced by Councilmember Frumin at Office of the Secretary

legislature

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors