People shop for groceries at a Walmart store in Ohio. New research suggests SNAP work requirements won’t enhance employment and will push more people off of food assistance. (Photo by Marty Schladen/Ohio Capital Journal)
As states enforce stricter work requirements for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), new research indicates these requirements could reduce food assistance without boosting employment rates. The analysis from The Hamilton Project, part of the Brookings Institution, highlights that the most reliable evidence suggests work mandates do not increase job opportunities. Instead, they result in significant declines in SNAP participation.
The Hamilton Project’s findings arrive amid substantial changes for SNAP, influenced by the president’s domestic policy reforms last summer. States have begun notifying SNAP recipients that they must comply with work requirements or risk losing benefits. These changes particularly impact older adults, homeless individuals, veterans, and rural residents.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which cuts social services like Medicaid and SNAP, has resulted in a marked decrease in SNAP enrollment. Lauren Bauer from Brookings Institution stated that as states continue implementing these work conditions, more beneficiaries will likely lose assistance. “Everything that we know about work requirements is that they do not increase employment among the groups that are subject to them,” Bauer noted.
Research shows SNAP’s work requirements are ineffective, confusing, and burdensome. Bauer emphasized that SNAP should focus on combating hunger rather than integrating workforce development initiatives. The stricter work mandates could also affect unemployed individuals during economic downturns, as SNAP traditionally provides swift food aid to the jobless.
At least 2.5 million low-income individuals have lost SNAP benefits since the law’s passage, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The decline in SNAP participation is notable, with the program’s enrollment falling below 40 million for the first time since the pandemic, as noted by a USDA spokesperson.
Republicans, including U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, argue that the legislative changes to SNAP are necessary for reducing waste and fraud. In a news release, Johnson described SNAP as a “bloated, inefficient program,” assuring that Americans requiring food aid would still receive it. “Republicans are proud to defend commonsense welfare reform, fiscal sanity, and the dignity of work,” Johnson stated.
Stateline reporter Kevin Hardy can be reached at khardy@stateline.org.
This story was originally produced by Stateline, part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
