This bill amends how U.S. poverty levels are determined and modifies Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility and enforcement provisions.
The Bureau of the Census must (1) collect specified data regarding the receipt of federal benefits and individual income, and (2) use the data to provide an alternative poverty measure. The bill also establishes a commission to recommend the valuation of specific federal benefits for the purpose of estimating the Federal Poverty Level.
The bill also expands the applicability of the general work requirements for SNAP recipients to include those who are ages 16-64 (currently 16-59) with exemptions.
This bill also expands the applicability of the work requirements for SNAP recipients who are able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) to include those who are ages 18-64 (currently 18-55). In general, ABAWDs have work requirements in addition to the general SNAP work-related requirements and are limited to receiving 3 months of SNAP benefits in a 36-month period, unless the additional work-related requirements are met. Further, the bill allows married individuals with a dependent over the age of six to jointly fulfill hour-based work requirements.
Additional changes to SNAP include
requiring states participating in SNAP to contribute specified matching funds, beginning at 10% for FY2025 and increasing annually until the matching requirement reaches 50% for FY2033 and each subsequent fiscal year; requiring SNAP beneficiaries to participate in fraud investigations; and establishing penalties (e.g., benefit suspensions) for unauthorized uses of electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards.