Congress Faces Pressure to Delay SNAP Funding Shift as Millions Lose Benefits
Around five million Americans, including 1.5 million children, have lost SNAP benefits since new work requirements and cost-sharing rules took effect, prompting food-assistance groups to urge Congress to postpone the upcoming funding changes.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is set to undergo a major funding overhaul in October, when states will be required to cover 75% of its administrative costs and eventually assume a share of benefit-payment errors. Critics say the changes, part of the Republican-backed budget bill H.R. 1, have already contributed to the loss of SNAP coverage for roughly five million people nationwide, including more than 1.5 million children, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP).
The CBPP’s director of federal SNAP policy, Dottie Rosenbaum, said the decline in participation is "far deeper and far faster than the Congressional Budget Office predicted" and noted reports of families choosing between rent and groceries. Food-bank leaders in states such as Arizona, New Mexico, Louisiana and Arkansas described sharp increases in demand as SNAP rolls shrink.
In Arizona, the Department of Economic Security tightened documentation and income monitoring after the law’s passage, leading to over 400,000 lost recipients, according to the CBPP. Terri Shoemaker of the Arizona Food Bank Network said the drop in SNAP enrollment caused a comparable rise in food-bank visits, stressing that food banks cannot replace the scale of SNAP meals.
Similar pressures are evident in New Mexico, where food-bank director Jill Dixon described long lines and a surge in meals distributed, and in Louisiana, where a 21% per-capita decline in SNAP enrollment has been reported. Arkansas food-bank chief Jeff Quick warned that the state could face a $1.2 billion economic impact if SNAP funding gaps persist.
State and national food-assistance groups are urging Congress to pass a resolution delaying the cost shift, giving states more time to improve error-rate reporting and avoid further cuts. Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman has introduced a farm-bill amendment to postpone the shift, though it has not yet cleared the House. Lawmakers are expected to reconvene in Washington on Sept. 14.