Proposed changes to SNAP will be detrimental for neighbors, the state and the emergency food system.
On May 14, the House Committee on Agriculture passed a bill that aims to cut $300 billion in funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps. The Greater Chicago Food Depository strongly opposes this bill, which will drastically weaken SNAP at a time when 1 in 5 Chicago area households experience food insecurity.
If enacted, this bill would slash federal funding for food assistance by forcing states to bear costs they are not prepared to assume. It would limit SNAP’s ability to respond during inflation and recessions. It would take SNAP away from parents and grandparents of school-aged children, older adults in their early sixties, and people with limited job opportunities by tightening burdensome and ineffective work requirements.
Specifically, making it harder for people to qualify for basic food assistance by expanding current work requirements would be disastrous and advances a misconception of how and why people often face hunger in the United States. Raising the age limit of able-bodied adults who need to satisfy work requirements from 54 to 64, and expanding work requirements for households with a “dependent child” above age 7 will create hunger and hardship for an estimated 500,000 Illinoisans likely to lose all or some of their benefits.
Equally alarming is the proposal to profoundly restructure the way SNAP is funded by shifting a significant share of the financial responsibility to individual states. In the proposal, Illinois could be required to cover 25% of the costs of SNAP benefits starting in FY2028, and 25% more of the administrative costs – which together could amount to $1 billion annually. Most states, including Illinois, are unable to take on this cost burden and will be forced to severely reduce benefits and/or restrict eligibility further.
We are also deeply disappointed by the proposal that would limit a re-evaluation of benefit levels to every five years and require updates to be cost-neutral. This would prevent benefits from increasing alongside actual food costs making the benefits less adequate for households over time.
SNAP is our country’s first line of defense against hunger and is needed now more than ever. At a time when food prices and housing costs continue to challenge household budgets, more families are falling behind and are having to turn to food pantries for the first time. A reduction to SNAP, combined with the proposed cuts to Medicaid and other essential safety net programs will have catastrophic consequences for millions of households already finding it hard to afford nutritious food. Food insecurity and poverty will skyrocket and lines at food pantries will get longer. Hunger relief charities like the Food Depository and our local partners will not be able to meet the increased need.
These historic proposed cuts represent a giant step backwards in efforts to create healthy, hunger-free communities. We implore Congress to reject these devastating recommendations and vote no on any bill that contains cuts to SNAP.
We must stop treating food as a privilege. It is a basic human right.
Take action now. Please complete our latest Action Alert to tell your representative to vote NO on cuts to SNAP and Medicaid.
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