The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides food assistance to millions of Americans, is now enforcing expanded work requirements that affect a broader segment of recipients, including older adults and parents of teenagers. This development is part of legislative changes introduced through a major tax and spending bill enacted earlier this year.
Previously, SNAP's work mandates applied primarily to adults aged 18 to 54 who were physically and mentally capable of employment and did not have dependents under 18 years. The updated provisions have extended these requirements to include individuals aged 55 through 64 and parents whose youngest child is at least 14 years old. Moreover, the revisions eliminate prior exemptions granted to specific groups such as homeless people, military veterans, and young adults transitioning out of foster care. These changes also limit state discretion to waive work conditions in regions experiencing low employment opportunities.
Under the new rules, affected SNAP beneficiaries must engage in work, volunteer activities, or job training for no less than 80 hours monthly. Failure to comply restricts benefit eligibility to a maximum of three months within a three-year period. This tightening is projected by the Congressional Budget Office to reduce the average monthly SNAP caseload by approximately 2.4 million people over the next decade.
The timeline for applying these updated requirements is not uniform across the United States; it depends heavily on individual state implementations. Some states have already activated these work mandates, while others are preparing for imminent rollouts. Texas led the changes starting in October, which implies some participants may have exhausted their allotted benefits by the beginning of January and consequently been removed from the program.
In several states where the policy began in November, such as Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, and Hawaii, beneficiaries might face benefit termination imminently. Meanwhile, states including Illinois and Ohio are set to initiate enforcement this coming Sunday, with participants potentially losing benefits as early as May. Notably, Ohio requires proof of compliance, mandating recipients to submit documentation of their work activities beginning in March.
Certain states have secured waivers that delay the imposition of these work requirements, largely owing to relatively high unemployment rates within their jurisdictions or specific localities. For instance, California’s exemption is anticipated to last until January 2027. However, most other waiver periods have concluded or are approaching their end. New York will commence work requirements in most areas by March, though Saratoga County implemented the rules in October.
Approximately 42 million individuals across the country, equating to one in every eight Americans, receive SNAP assistance. The bulk of this demographic resides in households with incomes below the federal poverty threshold, roughly $33,000 annually for a family of four. Analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities indicates that around 60% of SNAP users are part of families with children, and over 33% belong to households including older adults or people with disabilities. Employment is present in roughly 39% of these households, illustrating that many beneficiaries are engaged in some form of work.
The monthly average benefit per recipient stands near $190.
Aside from work requirements, additional administrative adjustments to the SNAP program are scheduled to take effect. From October onward, states will be obligated to finance three-quarters of the program’s administrative expenses, a notable shift from the previous approximate equal cost division between federal and state governments. Furthermore, by late 2027, states with comparatively higher rates of payment errors will be accountable for reimbursing a portion of the benefit expenditures.