The administration of Maine Gov. Janet Mills is ending the use of photos on food benefits cards, saying there is no evidence such efforts cut down on fraud.
The Democrat's administration said Friday that the state is ending the policy immediately.
Republican former Gov. Paul LePage's administration in 2014 began allowing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients to have photos placed on electronic benefits cards.
Mills' administration says federal officials have warned Maine that it doesn't adequately inform participants that the program is voluntary.
The administration says some households have been wrongly denied grocery purchases because they weren't pictured on EBT cards.
Participants who currently have photo EBT cards may continue to use them.