Checks from recipients of the Supplemental Security Income Program (SNAP) in 32 states will reflect a reduction of at least $95 per month starting this month following the additional pandemic emergency appropriation approved by Congress expired on March 1.
A statement from the Food and Nutrition Service of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the agency in charge of administering and distributing SNAP funds, states that, Starting this month, millions of recipients will see a reduction of at least that much compared to the check they’ve been receiving for the past three years. or since the spring of 2020 when aid was extended through federal legislation.
“Emergency allocations allowed all households receiving SNAP to receive an additional $95 in benefits or an additional benefit in the amount of the maximum benefit for your household size, whichever is greater. When emergency allocations end, you will return to your normal SNAP benefit amount. which, depending on your family’s income, may be less than the maximum benefit for your family size,” USDA explains on its website.
The available information details that all households that received the temporary increase in benefits under the emergency allowances will no longer have the additional income.
Social Security recipients also feel effects of the reduction in funds
This includes recipients of Social Security Administration (SSA) programs whose additional source of income is food stamps.
“Each year, SSA is required to make a cost-of-living adjustment to ensure that Social Security recipients can cope with inflation. Social Security is the most common source of income for households receiving SNAP. When Social Security or any household income goes up, SNAP benefits go down,” the Department explains.
“While the Social Security COLA impacts SNAP amounts each year, the 2023 COLA is the highest in 40 years. Households receiving SNAP and Social Security benefits will see their SNAP benefits drop as early as January 2023 due to the significant increase in Social Security benefits to reflect the cost of living. However, households will continue to experience a net gain because the reduction in SNAP benefits is less than the increase in Social Security benefits.
The change responds to the approval last December of the omnibus law or federal spending for fiscal year 2023 that ended with emergency aid.
Congress had given way to the stipend through the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) in March 2020.
SNAP Funding Reduction Schedule
As of January, additional grants ended in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Wyoming.
In South Carolina, the reduction went into effect in February. While in the remaining 32 states, Washington DC, Guam, and the Virgin Islands, the change went into effect yesterday.
For more details on benefit reduction you can access the information on the USDA website which is updated as more data and resources become available.
