Posted on 05/04/2026 5:53:17 AM PDT by Red Badger
Millions have lost access to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits since new work requirements became law July 2025, the Wall Street Journal reported Saturday.
There have been nearly 3.5 million fewer enrollees for SNAP benefits since July 2025 as the number fell from an average of 42.1 million in the previous fiscal year to 38.5 million as of Jan. 2026, the WSJ reported, citing federal data.
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The new work requirements stipulate that able-bodied and mentally fit adults aged 18–64 years old without dependents aged under 14 years old must take up paid or unpaid employment, volunteering, or a government-run work program for at least 80 hours a month, according to the outlet.
The expanded work requirements are contained in the “One Big Beautiful Bill” signed into law July 4, 2025, by President Donald Trump. The adult age bracket previously affected was 18–54 years old, and dependents had to be under 18 years of age, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which is responsible for SNAP. (RELATED: Trump Caps July 4 With ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Signing)
The changes to the work requirements were the most expansive to SNAP in decades, a USDA spokesperson told the WSJ.
While illegal immigrants were never eligible for SNAP benefits, certain legal immigrants have now been restricted from accessing the benefits, the outlet reported.
All U.S. states except Alaska, Hawaii and Kentucky have seen declines in enrollment, according to a SNAP tracker run by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP). Alaska, Hawaii and Kentucky have seen slight increases in SNAP enrollment, the tracker shows. Puerto Rico does not receive SNAP, while the number of SNAP aid recipients in Guam has spiked by nearly 23%, according to the tracker.
Virginia, Florida, North Carolina and Tennessee are some of the states with double-digit declines of less than 20%, the tracker shows. Virginia and some other affected states are trying to link affected people with job or volunteering opportunities, according to the WSJ.
Arizona has the highest decline with over 51%, as 424,000 fewer people, including 181,000 fewer children, access SNAP aid, according to the CBPP. The state incorporated the changes to the requirements as soon as the megabill was passed, the WSJ reported.
The expanded work requirements were primarily responsible for the drop, Brett Bezio, a spokesman for Arizona’s Department of Economic Security, which administers SNAP at the state level, told the WSJ.
Colleen Heflin, a food insecurity expert at Syracuse University who studies food insecurity, reportedly described the decline in Arizona as unprecedented, also predicting that “a surge in food insecurity and its related negative consequences at new levels” could follow.
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Good Lord, that woman needs to lose some of those food stamps! Looks like she swallowed a hippo. 😕
Reminds me of Madea.....................
Except meaner.
She’s gonna “literally starve!”............in two years!..............
Only one? Looks she may swallowed multiple hippos.
Pretty tough to get a job after 60. There are people in that 60-65 age bracket who are truly in need.
This is exactly what we need. In fact, we need tens of millions to drop off the Welfare and Food Stamp rolls. Obama intentionally expanded Food Stamp eligibility, in particular, into the middle class to get more voters hooked on government handouts. Its the Dems’ insidious plot to get every voter getting some type of handout so they vote Democrat and Republicans too scared to cut it off. Welfare and Food Stamps need to be cut back so that only the very poor get them and then only on a temporary basis unless they are elderly or disabled.
The reality is that SS and medicare are both very sound. The only thing threatening either one are scams. If fraud is stopped we have more than enough money for all entitled, legal benefits. Don’t let anyone tell you different. Yes you will hear government officials and the toady press say that SS or Medicare is running out in some future year. But that is only true if you calculate using the database that has millions of dead people in it and others who are not US citizens. When you get rid of the scams and the people who have long since been dead, you end up with a very reasonable situation. We can pay everyone’s benefits. When people vote democrat they are voting for the scams. Don’t buy it. Demand every dime you are due.
Our society is infested with parasites of all ages. “Gibsmedat” is their cry. They prey on our society’s tendency to want to help those really in need.
They ae sociopathic and mentally disturbed. They undermine our helping system through their self-centered, exaggerated sense of entitlement.
Agree. The only jobs left are ones that the age group literally cannot perform without pain. It is not always attributable to weight.
Pretty tough to get a job after 60. There are people in that 60-65 age bracket who are truly in need
Are they dropping off welfare rolls because they can’t get their sugary treats with food stamps anymore?
I think that is an Ai video. Sora is Ai. It’s out of control, just about everything you see today is Ai generated
Does Walmart still hire Greeters
They prey on white America's obsession to placate the downtrodden and oppressed black man. It's all a travesty going back to johnson's great society.
Tell me about it! I’m 71 and laid off!.................
Their kids should take care of them. Time to get back to the concept of Extended Families, who take care of each other. Kids should take care of their elderly parents, if they have the means to do so.
Now, go to work!
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