More than 4 million Americans have lost SNAP benefits as food assistance changes take hold
Bolarinwa Oladeji
Mon, August 3, 2026
THE GRIO
FILE - SNAP EBT information sign is displayed at a gas station in Riverwoods, Ill., Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, file)
The reduction comes ahead of even broader changes scheduled to take effect over the next two years under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
More than four million Americans are no longer receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits as a series of federal policy changes begins to reshape the nation's largest food assistance program, prompting concern from anti-hunger advocates and policy experts.
According to NPR's analysis of preliminary U.S. Department of Agriculture data, average monthly SNAP participation has fallen from roughly 42 million recipients last July to about 37 million as of April, representing an 11% decline nationwide. The reduction comes ahead of even broader changes scheduled to take effect over the next two years under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The legislation expands work requirements for several groups that were previously exempt, including some veterans, adults experiencing homelessness, older Americans between ages 55 and 64, certain parents of teenagers, and young adults who have aged out of foster care. It also narrows eligibility for some noncitizens who had previously qualified for food assistance.
While the U.S. Department of Agriculture has argued that SNAP participation naturally fluctuates and may also reflect a stronger economy, NPR reported that analysts at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities dispute that explanation, pointing to relatively stable unemployment alongside persistently high grocery prices. The organization contends that policy changes and administrative hurdles are driving much of the decline.
The impact has varied across the country. NPR's reporting highlighted Arizona as one of the hardest-hit states, where SNAP enrollment has dropped by more than 400,000 people over the past year. Officials with the Arizona Food Bank Network say food banks there are now serving more people each month than are enrolled in the federal nutrition program.
Additional changes are still on the horizon. Beginning in October, states will assume a significantly larger share of SNAP's administrative costs. Starting in 2027, some states could also be required to help fund food benefits if they exceed certain payment error thresholds.
As NPR noted, several advocacy organizations and state officials have warned that the new financial burden could force some states to tighten eligibility further or reduce participation if costs become unsustainable.
Experts caution that food banks and charitable organizations are unlikely to have the capacity to replace the assistance SNAP currently provides for millions of low-income households.
FILE - SNAP EBT information sign is displayed at a gas station in Riverwoods, Ill., Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, file)
The reduction comes ahead of even broader changes scheduled to take effect over the next two years under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
More than four million Americans are no longer receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits as a series of federal policy changes begins to reshape the nation's largest food assistance program, prompting concern from anti-hunger advocates and policy experts.
According to NPR's analysis of preliminary U.S. Department of Agriculture data, average monthly SNAP participation has fallen from roughly 42 million recipients last July to about 37 million as of April, representing an 11% decline nationwide. The reduction comes ahead of even broader changes scheduled to take effect over the next two years under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The legislation expands work requirements for several groups that were previously exempt, including some veterans, adults experiencing homelessness, older Americans between ages 55 and 64, certain parents of teenagers, and young adults who have aged out of foster care. It also narrows eligibility for some noncitizens who had previously qualified for food assistance.
While the U.S. Department of Agriculture has argued that SNAP participation naturally fluctuates and may also reflect a stronger economy, NPR reported that analysts at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities dispute that explanation, pointing to relatively stable unemployment alongside persistently high grocery prices. The organization contends that policy changes and administrative hurdles are driving much of the decline.
The impact has varied across the country. NPR's reporting highlighted Arizona as one of the hardest-hit states, where SNAP enrollment has dropped by more than 400,000 people over the past year. Officials with the Arizona Food Bank Network say food banks there are now serving more people each month than are enrolled in the federal nutrition program.
Additional changes are still on the horizon. Beginning in October, states will assume a significantly larger share of SNAP's administrative costs. Starting in 2027, some states could also be required to help fund food benefits if they exceed certain payment error thresholds.
As NPR noted, several advocacy organizations and state officials have warned that the new financial burden could force some states to tighten eligibility further or reduce participation if costs become unsustainable.
Experts caution that food banks and charitable organizations are unlikely to have the capacity to replace the assistance SNAP currently provides for millions of low-income households.
Alix Martichoux
Sun, August 2, 2026
SNAP recipients, some middle-class families get $60 monthly for produce in new bill. Who qualifies?
(NEXSTAR) – Some families could start getting $60 a month in extra food assistance, a new bill introduced in July proposes.
The "Fresh Bucks for Fresh Produce" Act would establish a pilot program that awards grants to states so they can give the extra grocery money to lower-income and moderate-income people. To qualify for increased benefits, households would need to earn 80% or less than the median income of their area.
SNAP recipients would qualify for an added monthly benefit, but those who don't receive SNAP money could also apply.
Eligible households would then get an additional $60 on top of their usual monthly SNAP benefits loaded onto their EBT cards, or a new EBT card if they aren't receiving food assistance already.
The $60 would need to be spent on fruit or vegetables, which can be fresh, frozen or dried.
Who would get the additional funding?
The bill proposes establishing a new grant program that would give certain states the extra funding to establish the pilot program. States would have to apply for the extra funding, and preference will be given to states that "prioritize food insecure communities," the bill says
If your state were to participate in the pilot program, then your household would be eligible to receive the extra $60 per month if you earn less than 80% of the area's median income.
That income cap would vary greatly from place to place, from around $63,000 in Bismarck, North Dakota, to something like $113,000 in San Francisco, California. The exact income limits would be determined by the Departments of Agriculture and Housing and Urban Development.
The legislation was inspired by a pilot program in Seattle, which led to higher food security and participants having better access to produce, according to Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), who introduced the bill in Congress.
What happens next?
The bill has quite a few hurdles to overcome before it becomes law. It was referred to the House Committee on Agriculture after being introduced on July 2. Members of that committee now have the opportunity to review the bill and make changes before potentially introducing it to the whole House for a vote. Then it would be up to the Senate to pass it and the president to sign it.
Rep. Jayapal urged Congress to take swift action. "We must pass this legislation to expand the program nationwide and get families in every corner of the country healthy produce they can afford."
An estimated 37 million Americans receive benefits under SNAP, previously called the Food Stamp Program. Recent changes have cut the number of people who qualify for food assistance, and more cuts could be on the way.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
SNAP benefits for immigrants lawsuit launches in blue states
Chris Wade
Mon, August 3, 2026
A bronze statue of Lady Justice holding scales. Photo: deep Bhullar / Pexels
Key takeaways
New York Attorney General Leticia James leads a group of Democrats suing the Trump administration over SNAP eligibility requirements for non-citizens.
(The Center Square) — New York Attorney General Leticia James is leading a group of Democrats suing the Trump administration over a requirement to turn over personal information about SNAP recipients.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court on Monday, James and 20 other attorneys general argue that the Department of Agriculture's recent guidance declaring that some immigrants, including refugees and those granted asylum, are ineligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is illegal. The AGs ask a federal judge to block enforcement of the policy.
In the 60-page complaint, the Democrats said the USDA's new policy requiring non-citizens to have lived in the country for 5 years to receive SNAP benefits means that anyone entering the country — including those admitted through humanitarian protection programs for asylum seekers and refugees — would automatically be ineligible for temporary food assistance.
The USDA's push to enforce the new rules also "threatens to destabilize SNAP nationwide," according to the lawsuit, and puts a significant financial strain on states that would have to shoulder the cost of fines for violations.
The AGs pointed out that the Trump administration has been blocked by recent federal court rulings from accessing personal information of welfare recipients to probe for immigration violations.
"This Administration has used every means at its disposal to erode federal confidentiality protections and deploy unsubstantiated allegations of "fraud" in order to target plaintiff States' anti-poverty programs, TANF included, and particularly to target the benefits these programs provide by law to qualified immigrants and children in immigrant communities," the AGs wrote in the complaint.
"Courts have repeatedly enjoined the Administration's prior efforts to share information in violation of federal confidentiality protections and to target disfavored benefit recipients," the lawsuit states.
In October, the USDA issued new guidance to states curtailing SNAP eligibility for non-citizens, as it implemented spending cuts and expanded work requirements approved by President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The Trump administration has threatened to withhold food aid from recipients in most Democratic-controlled states unless those states provide information about recipients.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at the time that the agency wants to "make sure that those who really need food stamps are getting them" and also "to ensure that the American taxpayer is protected." She has cited data showing that 186,000 deceased people are receiving SNAP benefits and another 500,000 have been getting double benefits.
In 2025, roughly 42 million people received food stamps to help pay for their groceries, or about one and eight Americans, according to the USDA. As of April, that number dropped to about 37 million, the agency said.
Other states that signed onto Monday's lawsuit included California, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.
James, a Democrat who has sued the Trump administration more than 74 times, claims the Trump administration is "illegally" cutting off SNAP benefits — formerly known as food stamps — for tens of thousands of lawful permanent residents.
"The federal government's shameful quest to take food away from children and families continues," James said in the statement. "USDA has no authority to arbitrarily cut entire groups of people out of the SNAP program, and no one should go hungry because of the circumstances of their arrival to this country."
(The Center Square) — New York Attorney General Leticia James is leading a group of Democrats suing the Trump administration over a requirement to turn over personal information about SNAP recipients.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court on Monday, James and 20 other attorneys general argue that the Department of Agriculture's recent guidance declaring that some immigrants, including refugees and those granted asylum, are ineligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is illegal. The AGs ask a federal judge to block enforcement of the policy.
In the 60-page complaint, the Democrats said the USDA's new policy requiring non-citizens to have lived in the country for 5 years to receive SNAP benefits means that anyone entering the country — including those admitted through humanitarian protection programs for asylum seekers and refugees — would automatically be ineligible for temporary food assistance.
The USDA's push to enforce the new rules also "threatens to destabilize SNAP nationwide," according to the lawsuit, and puts a significant financial strain on states that would have to shoulder the cost of fines for violations.
The AGs pointed out that the Trump administration has been blocked by recent federal court rulings from accessing personal information of welfare recipients to probe for immigration violations.
"This Administration has used every means at its disposal to erode federal confidentiality protections and deploy unsubstantiated allegations of "fraud" in order to target plaintiff States' anti-poverty programs, TANF included, and particularly to target the benefits these programs provide by law to qualified immigrants and children in immigrant communities," the AGs wrote in the complaint.
"Courts have repeatedly enjoined the Administration's prior efforts to share information in violation of federal confidentiality protections and to target disfavored benefit recipients," the lawsuit states.
In October, the USDA issued new guidance to states curtailing SNAP eligibility for non-citizens, as it implemented spending cuts and expanded work requirements approved by President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The Trump administration has threatened to withhold food aid from recipients in most Democratic-controlled states unless those states provide information about recipients.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at the time that the agency wants to "make sure that those who really need food stamps are getting them" and also "to ensure that the American taxpayer is protected." She has cited data showing that 186,000 deceased people are receiving SNAP benefits and another 500,000 have been getting double benefits.
In 2025, roughly 42 million people received food stamps to help pay for their groceries, or about one and eight Americans, according to the USDA. As of April, that number dropped to about 37 million, the agency said.
Other states that signed onto Monday's lawsuit included California, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.
James, a Democrat who has sued the Trump administration more than 74 times, claims the Trump administration is "illegally" cutting off SNAP benefits — formerly known as food stamps — for tens of thousands of lawful permanent residents.
"The federal government's shameful quest to take food away from children and families continues," James said in the statement. "USDA has no authority to arbitrarily cut entire groups of people out of the SNAP program, and no one should go hungry because of the circumstances of their arrival to this country."
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