Millions lose SNAP food benefits due to Trump ‘big beautiful bill’

OBBBA also created stricter rules for people accessing SNAP benefits. Previously, certain individuals were limited to three months of SNAP benefits every three years unless they worked 20 hours a week or qualified for an exemption.

The legislation expands these work requirements to individuals ages 55 to 64; Parents of minor children aged 14 and over; and homeless, veterans, or former foster youth. Some legal U.S. citizens who are not citizens will no longer be eligible for SNAP benefits.

Llobrera said the size of SNAP benefit payments is based on a “relatively complex” calculation that takes into account the number of people in the household and their income and expenses.

Rhonda Keene, 60, of Arizona, told CNBC that she first applied for SNAP benefits in February because her deteriorating health meant she could no longer work full time.

He said he has since responded to multiple requests from the state for more documentation to support his application. However, he still has not received any SNAP support.

“I’ve never been in this situation,” Keene said. “It’s pretty insulting.”

Keene said he relies on financial support from his family and odd jobs. He said his retirement savings were dwindling and he was worried he might lose his home. He said he also applied for Social Security disability and retirement benefits, but was told it would also take time to process.

Experts say Keen’s situation is not unusual.

“There’s a lot of paperwork that households have to submit” for SNAP as states try to reduce payment error rates, Llobrera said. “People are being cut because they don’t pass, their paperwork isn’t approved, or they’re improperly rejected.”

Nearly 400,000 Arizonans have lost access to SNAP due to recently enacted federal rules, according to Claudio Rodriguez, vice president of community development for the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona.

Deciding to seek help is already difficult for many people, and some don’t return to seek benefits, Rodriguez said.

“They don’t want to ask for that kind of help,” he said. “And people must overcome many barriers to reap these benefits.”

The average SNAP recipient in Arizona receives about $168 a month, Rodriguez said. For some, it can be difficult to justify the hours of paperwork and phone calls required to qualify for these benefit amounts, he said.

The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, which serves five counties, saw its donations increase 17% in the last food drive, according to Rodriguez.

“It just shows that people definitely know that their neighbors are in need and they want to help and support,” he said.

But Rodriguez and other experts say food banks can’t replace lost federal SNAP support.

Because SNAP provides nine meals for every meal a food bank provides, it will be impossible for food banks to make up for these benefit losses without additional financial assistance, according to Jared Call, director of public policy and advocacy for California Food Banks, a nonprofit organization with 43 member food banks.

Because some states have yet to fully implement the changes, experts say SNAP participation rates will likely fall even further.

“We’re getting ready to crash,” Call said.

California prepares to implement new expanded enforcement Call said the three-month time limit on social benefits will be effective as of June 1. Cuts for those who don’t meet the new requirements after three months will likely begin around October, and an estimated 55,000 to 60,000 Californians per month could lose their benefits.

California saw a more than 6% decline in SNAP participation from February 2025 to February 2026, according to data from CBPP.

California Food Banks serves 6 million people a month, up from 4.5 million people a month at the height of the Covid outbreak, Call said.

“We could not return to normal after the pandemic,” he said.

According to Krista Hesdorfer, director of public relations for Hunger Solutions New York, a nonprofit focused on reducing food insecurity, the new expanded work requirements went into effect in New York on March 1; This means beneficiaries can reach the three-month time limit on June 1.

“We know that in many states, including New York, the worst is yet to come,” Hesdorfer said.

As of February, before new federal rules were implemented, SNAP participation in New York state was down by about 150,000 beneficiaries, he said. About 300,000 to 400,000 New Yorkers are expected to be affected by these rules, he said.

“We are deeply concerned that many people will lose access to vital food benefits as they grapple with rising grocery costs, as well as rising costs from housing to healthcare to child care,” Hesdorfer said.

Advocates say they are hopeful lawmakers will take action to reduce the potential harm of SNAP cuts.

“We must work to ensure that everyone who needs it has access to SNAP to help put food on the table,” said Crystal FitzSimons, president of the Center for Food Research and Action, a nonprofit focused on combating poverty-related hunger in the United States.

FitzSimons said placing time limits on benefits to encourage work could be “problematic,” especially in communities where unemployment rates are high and it may be difficult for people to meet the new standards.

FitzSimons said it can also be difficult to consistently accommodate required work hours, especially since people’s work schedules can change due to the gig economy.