CSPI comment to USDA on SNAP administrative cost sharing

CSPI's comment to the USDA Food and Nutrition Administration regarding proposed changes to SNAP administrative cost sharing

SNAP is the nation’s primary defense against hunger and food insecurity and plays an important role in reducing food insecurity and poverty and supporting the health and well-being of low-income households. SNAP served approximately 42 million people a month on average in fiscal year 2025. The program primarily serves households facing significant economic hardship and households with characteristics that limit earning capacity. USDA data show that approximately 79 percent of SNAP households include a child, an older adult, or a person with a disability. SNAP households have extremely limited financial resources. In fiscal year 2024, the average SNAP household reported gross monthly income of approximately $1,117 and net monthly income of only $551. The average monthly SNAP benefit was approximately $341 per household.

Under current law, the federal government and states generally share the administrative costs of operating SNAP equally, with the federal government reimbursing states for 50 percent of allowable administrative expenses. H.R. 1, enacted as Public Law 119-21 in July 2025, amended the Food and Nutrition Act to reduce the federal share of SNAP administrative costs to 25 percent beginning in fiscal year 2027. USDA is proposing this rule to implement that statutory change. Beginning in fiscal year 2027, the proposed rule would reduce the federal reimbursement rate from 50 percent to 25 percent, making states responsible for the remaining 75 percent of most SNAP administrative costs. USDA’s regulatory impact analysis estimates that this change will shift approximately $16.9 billion in administrative spending from the federal government to states between fiscal years 2027 and 2031.

Because of the importance of SNAP to the well-being of American families, we are deeply concerned about USDA’s proposal to reduce the federal reimbursement rate for most SNAP administrative costs from 50 percent to 25 percent beginning in Fiscal Year 2027. This proposal would shift billions of dollars in administrative costs from the federal government to states, even as states implement the most consequential SNAP policy changes in decades. These changes, which include expanded work requirements and exemptions, new state responsibility for a portion of SNAP benefit costs based on payment error rates, and changes to eligibility for certain households, require additional staffing, system modifications, training, quality control activities, public education, technology upgrades, and customer assistance, not fewer resources. The reduction in federal funding will force states to make difficult budget decisions that could reduce administrative capacity and hinder effective program operations.