When he signed the farm bill earlier this year, President Trump announced “immediate action on welfare reform” with the first of three administration proposals to restrict access to food stamps. Together, the proposed regulations would chop SNAP enrollment by 3.7 million people, equal to 1 of every 11 participants in the largest U.S. anti-hunger program, said the Urban Institute on Monday.
“Such changes…could affect how millions of poor and low-income Americans purchase food,” wrote Laura Wheaton, a senior fellow at the nonprofit think tank. “Given the substantial effects, the policies and potential impacts should be considered carefully by policymakers and communities.”
More than 15 percent of recipients in nine states and the District of Columbia would become ineligible for SNAP under at least one of the proposals, which would cut food-stamp spending by a combined $4.2 billion annually, Wheaton calculated. Twenty percent of Vermont’s recipients would lose benefits, followed by losses of at least 18 percent in Connecticut, Nevada, Washington state and the District.
The largest part of the 3.7 million-person reduction would come through a proposal to restrict so-called categorical eligibility, which allows states to modify asset tests and income limits so people who receive social services can be considered for SNAP. Some 3.1 million people would lose eligibility under it.
An estimated 750,000 ABAWDs — able-bodied adults without dependents — would lose benefits under a proposal to limit the power of states to waive the usual limit of 90 days on benefits in a three-year period unless ABAWDs work at least 20 hours a week. “It’s called work rules,” Trump said last December 20, when a signing ceremony for the farm bill. The limits on waivers “will help Americans transition from welfare to gainful employment.”
The third proposal, announced in early October, would create a more uniform state-to-state method to calculate utility costs, a factor in determining food stamp benefits. The USDA estimated less than 8,000 households would lose benefits. The comment period on the proposal expires on Monday.
None of the proposals have taken effect yet. The USDA announced a second round of comment on the “cat el” proposal last month to take into account the impact on school meals. An estimated 982,000 children would lose automatic access to free meals at school because their families would lose SNAP benefits. Half of them would be eligible for reduced-price meals and 45 percent would still be eligible for free meals but their parents would have to submit paperwork to qualify. Four percent of children would have to pay for school lunch and school breakfast on their own.
While some states would face sharp reductions, “others that make little use of time-limit waivers or broad-based categorical eligibility would be minimally affected,” said the Urban Institute.
Congress rejected Republican proposals for broader and stricter SNAP work rules when it passed the farm bill. Recipients ages 16 to 59 are required to register for work and accept any suitable job unless they already are working 30 hours a week, are disabled, or caring for a child or someone who is incapacitated. ABAWD rules apply to people ages 18 to 49 years.
The report, “Estimated effect of recent proposed changes to SNAP regulations,” is available here.