The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced that federal funds allocated to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) could be cut if states continue making certain errors. Although funded at the federal level, the program is managed at the state level, with each state incurring an error rate in the delivery of SNAP benefits. According to the new warning, if these rates exceed a certain percentage, states may lose part of that funding, which has caused alarm for many states, as only eight are below the threshold.
This measure could result in the reduction or even elimination of the program for 300,000 people, of whom 96,000 are children. These payment errors occur due to overpayments or underpayments, with Alaska having the highest error rate, followed by Florida, New Mexico, and New York. The new error percentage is expected to take effect starting in the fiscal year 2028, being 6%. If this new margin were applied today, only Idaho, Nebraska, Snowfall South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Wyoming would be saved.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a federal program administered by state agencies, which is received by more than 40 million Americans, that is, 12% of the population. It is a social assistance program that allows eligible individuals to make their monthly purchases at supermarkets and designated establishments using an EBT card. Its main function is to provide food benefits to low-income families so that they can pay for basic nutritious foods. To access this assistance, it is necessary to meet certain eligibility requirements, which vary by state and include having net income less than or equal to the poverty threshold.
Threats to SNAP
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has made an announcement through which it has warned the states that if they continue making the same mistake, they could lose funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). What is the mistake they are making? As we have explained, SNAP is a federally funded program (for now), but it is distributed and managed by each state. This is why the rules and payments vary, as does the error rate in payments.
It is precisely in this aspect that federal attention is focused, because having high error rates could lead to the reduction or elimination of funding for the states. The consequences of this new measure would affect more than 300,000 SNAP beneficiaries, of whom 96,000 are children, who would be left without resources for proper child nutrition.
Error Rate Percentage
The national average error rate for 2024 hovered around 11%, which is unacceptable for the federal government. Where does such an error rate come from? The problem lies in overpayments or underpayments to beneficiaries, creating this gap. The states with the highest error rates (by a large margin) are:
- Alaska: 25%.
- Florida: 15%.
- New York: 15%.
- New Mexico: 14%.
New error rate
It is expected that starting in fiscal year 2028, the maximum error rate limit will be 6%, so the states that are currently suspended have some time to provide new figures. If the new percentage were implemented today, only 8 states would pass the cut, which are:
- Idaho
- Nebraska
- Snowfall
- South Dakota
- Utah
- Vermont
- WisconsinWyoming.
Do you live in a state that would pass the cutoff, or would you have to wait until 2028 to see the error rate reduced? This might not be the only threat facing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), given the restrictions and changes that Trump wants to implement. Read more here!