SNAP Funding Shifts.
States Face Higher SNAP Admin Costs, Raising Concerns Over Food Aid Cuts.
SNAP enrollment has fallen by more than 4 million people in just one year. Total participants dropped from 42.2 million in February 2025 to roughly 37.3 million by early 2026, according to ProPublica and Newsweek. The Trump administration calls it a success. Hunger advocates call it a crisis.
The decline follows the July 2025 signing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which made the largest changes to SNAP since 1964. And a major new cost shift is still coming. Starting October 1, 2026, states must cover 75% of SNAP's administrative costs — up from 50%. Many fear that will push more people off the program.
Millions Dropped from SNAP After Law Passed
President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on July 4, 2025, according to Ballotpedia. The law expanded work requirements to adults aged 55–64 and cut benefits for many non-citizens. By February 2026, at least 776,000 children had already lost SNAP benefits across just 12 states, ProPublica reported.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins defended the drop at a June 10, 2026, Senate hearing. She said most people removed from SNAP were "fraudulent" and called the reduction "good news" for program integrity, according to ProPublica. Democrats pushed back hard. Rep. Jim McGovern said, "These are people who actually need and rely on this food assistance to provide basic nutrition for their families."
States Face a Steep New Bill Starting This October
Before the new law, the federal government paid 50% of SNAP's administrative costs. Starting October 1, 2026, states must pay 75%. That means states will shell out far more just to run the program. Illinois faces an estimated $80 million annual increase, according to ProPublica. Maryland is looking at roughly $57.5 million more per year.
The pain doesn't stop there. Starting in 2027, states with high payment error rates must also pay 5%–15% of actual food benefits. California alone could face $2.5 billion in new costs once that kicks in, according to the Urban Institute. Nationwide, state costs could rise to $15 billion per year, analysts warn.
States Warn of Impossible Choices Between Food and Services
Alabama officials warned they face a "stark choice: pay more, cut error rates, or end the program," according to the Alabama Daily News. West Virginia advocates said the cost shift takes money away from education and infrastructure. The National Governors Association has called the situation an "administrative crisis."
Food economists say the error-rate rules create bad incentives. Parke Wilde of Tufts University told ProPublica that the rules create a "temptation for the states to bump off working families" — because their changing incomes make it hard to calculate benefits accurately. The Urban Institute and Brookings have warned that some states may exit SNAP entirely by 2027 if the financial risk becomes too unpredictable.
The Real Cost of Cutting Food Benefits to Local Economies
Every $1 cut from SNAP costs local economies $1.50 to $1.80 in economic activity, according to the Food Research & Action Center, cited by the Alabama Daily News. SNAP benefits are spent quickly at grocery stores, which means cuts ripple fast through local communities. Twenty-one state attorneys general filed suit in November 2025 to block the law's eligibility cuts, led by New York and California.
Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America, warned the law "threatens to worsen the crisis, taking away access to food from millions of people." Katie Bergh of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities said children are becoming "collateral damage" as states scramble to cut costs, according to ProPublica. The October deadline is weeks away, and many states still don't have a plan.
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