There are concerns that many beneficiaries will lose their eligibility as new regulations that significantly reduce the work requirement exemption for SNAP recipients will be announced next month, four months earlier than scheduled. The USDA Food and Nutrition Services announced on the 3rd that the existing work requirement exemption for Able-Body Adults Without Dependents (ABAWD) will end on November 2nd, which will force states, including New York, to implement SNAP cuts.
When the Trump tax cut law (One Big Beautiful Bill Act) was signed in July, the existing work requirement exemption for ABAWD was scheduled to end in February 2026, but the USDA has suddenly moved up the schedule. When the existing ABAWD work requirement exemption ends, previously exempted individuals, such as veterans, the homeless, parents with dependent children under 18, seniors over 55, and young adults leaving foster care, will have to prove that they are trying to find work, such as through day labour, volunteer work, or job training, in order to receive food stamps (SNAP).
The new ABAWD work requirement exemptions under the Trump tax cut law include parents with dependent children under 14 and individuals over 65. This means that able-bodied individuals will have to meet the new work requirement starting next month to maintain their SNAP eligibility, which means that previously exempted recipients should hurry and start looking for work.
According to the New York State Temporary and Disability Assistance Administration (NYSTPDA), about 400,000 of the state’s approximately 3 million SNAP beneficiaries will no longer be eligible for the work requirement exemption due to the implementation of the Trump tax cut law, .In New York City, there are about 1.8 million SNAP beneficiaries, including 500,000 children and pregnant women, and it is predicted that about 240,000 people could lose their eligibility due to the new work requirement.
Molly Wassow-Park, director of the New York City Department of Social Services, expressed her frustration, saying, “It’s virtually impossible to meet this schedule,” and state officials also objected, saying, “It takes at least 12 to 18 months to implement the new work exemption regulation, but the federal government suddenly issued this absurd directive saying it should be implemented within a month.”
Meanwhile, the National Snap Food Stamp Program (SNAP) provides food assistance to low-income residents. As of 2024, it provides up to $292 per month for a single-person household and $975 per month for a four-person household, for monthly groceries allowance of $376 per New York State household. However, to receive SNAP benefits, even those living in poverty must meet the minimum 80 hours of work required by the “Able-Born Adult Without Dependents” (ABAWD) requirement each month.