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By Aliss Higham
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New rules for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) contained in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) have been questioned by Democratic lawmakers.
The bill, which is the centerpiece of President Donald Trump's domestic policy, introduces some new financial commitments for states that fail to hold down erroneous payments. Under the new rules, states would for the first time be required to pay toward the cost of SNAP benefits if they have an error payment rate of above 6 percent, starting in 2028. The U.S. Department of Agriculture currently funds the entire cost of benefits.
But carve-outs in the final bill mean that some states may be able to avoid paying, which Democrats have said is "hypocrisy."
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Why It Matters
The SNAP funding changes will mean that many already-strained state budgets will need to pay up if they fail to keep their error rate below 6 percent.
As it stands, based on 2024 error rates, 37 states will need to begin paying for a share of benefits, although there is time for states to reduce improper payments before the policy begins in 2028.
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What To Know
Under the legislation, starting in the 2028 fiscal year, states can use either 2025 or 2026 error rate to calculate the percentage of benefits it must pay. For 2029 and thereafter, states will use the payment error rate for the third fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the state share is being calculated. For example, in 2029, states will use the 2026 error rate to calculate the share.
However, the Republican-backed plan permits a two-year delay in implementation for states with payment error rates of about 13.34 percent or higher—a move Republicans say is intended to help states with high error rates reduce them.
Democratic Senators Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Brian Schatz of Hawaii have taken issue with the legislation. Klobuchar said that under the bill, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon and Washington, D.C., will be exempt from having to pay for a portion of benefits.
Alaska is a key state in the situation. Senator Lisa Murkowski cast a crucial vote for the bill to pass in the Senate last week after she secured the two-year reprieve for the states with the highest error rates. Alaska has the highest error rate in the country at 24.66 percent, which has come down significantly in recent years.
Glenn Thompson, chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, which oversees SNAP, said the Senate "had to add something to get to address that challenge that Alaska has."
"The goal is, from a functionality perspective, they need to get their error rate down as soon as possible, because when the time comes, and they have to start to pay, they don't want to be that high error rate that you're coming in now," he said.
But Klobuchar and Schatz have taken issue with the policy, which the Minnesota senator said was "absurd."
"The most absurd example of the hypocrisy of the Republican bill: they have now proposed delaying SNAP cuts FOR TWO YEARS ONLY FOR STATES with the highest error rates just to bury their help for Alaska," Klobuchar wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Schatz said he had contacted Hawaii Governor Josh Green regarding the policy, and said the 10 states included in the reprieve are "the ones with the MOST ERRORS in administering the program."
Hawaii has made good work of reducing its erroneous payment rate, which now stands at 6.68 percent, a significant drop from 20.94 percent in 2023.
"And because he [Governor Josh Green] did good work in reducing the error rate by 15 percent, we are not exempt," Schatz said.
What People Are Saying
Senator Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Democrat, on X following the passage of the OBBBA in the Senate: "In the SNAP program, we have added tribal exemptions for work requirements, delayed cost-share penalties to help Alaska get benefits to the people who need them, and included work requirement waivers that align with our Medicaid policies. We also secured commitments from the Secretary of Agriculture to provide additional flexibilities to Alaska for SNAP.
"But, let's not kid ourselves. This has been an awful process—a frantic rush to meet an artificial deadline that has tested every limit of this institution. While we have worked to improve the present bill for Alaska, it is not good enough for the rest of our nation—and we all know it."
Senator Brian Schatz, a Hawaii Democrat, on X: "We are being penalized. And if you keep your error rate high you get another year reprieve! This bill is chock full of crazy, stupid policies written in a hurry, some by hand, in the margins of a bill."
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