Federal lawmakers want to repeal a provision within the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that is designed to help families with high expenses afford food.
The policy, known as broad-based categorical eligibility (BBCE), raises gross income requirements and considers other monthly expenses, like housing and childcare, when determining qualification for the grocery benefit.
The provision, which dates back to welfare reforms in 1996, allows states to adopt these expanded eligibility rules, “so that families, seniors, and people with a disability can have modest savings without losing SNAP,” according to a report published by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Florida is one of 44 states currently using the expanded eligibility rules.
Eliminating expanded eligibility under SNAP
Federal lawmakers have proposed billions in spending cuts to SNAP as part of the ongoing budget reconciliation process.
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In February, the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means passed its version of a spending plan that includes a line item to end BBCE, citing the changes “would improve program integrity within SNAP and protect the program for the truly needy."
Eliminating BBCE is projected to save $10 billion over 10 years, according to the proposal. That’s a fraction of the $230 billion in proposed SNAP cuts, but it has an “outsized importance to working families building financial independence compared to the federal cost,” said Carolyn Vega, the associate director of policy for hunger relief nonprofit Share Our Strength.
How does BBCE work?
Under current rules, gross income criteria to qualify for SNAP is set at 130 percent of the federal povery line, or around $40,000 for a family of four living in Hillsborough County. BBCE allows states to increase that limit to 200 percent of the federal poverty line, or around $64,000 for the same family.
The provision also allows states to forego the “asset test,” or the amount of financial resources like vehicles owned and money saved, when determining eligibility. Under regular SNAP rules, assets cannot exceed around $3,000 for most households.
“I worry that this is just an ideological target because…it can be a talking point that, ’these rich families with assets are getting SNAP,' when, in fact, it is really just supporting working families with high expenses to grow toward financial independence with a modest savings cushion,” Vega said.
Some federal lawmakers have called BBCE “a loophole” that allows grocery benefits to go to non-needy families.
Gina Plata-Nino, the deputy director of SNAP for the Food Research and Action Center, said that the less restrictive income and asset requirements does not mean that the qualification process for SNAP is less strenuous.
“It’s not a loophole. You don’t automatically get in...You still have to go through additional steps…you have to go through an application process. You have to go through an interview, and once that is done, you have to go through another interview, which are called interim reports or recertifications,” Plata-Nino said.
A greater administrative burden for states
Without the wiggle room that BBCE provides, stringent income requirements can create what’s called a “benefits cliff,” where families automatically lose benefits due to minor changes in household income.
Plata-Nino said this creates more “churn,” or when families exit and re-enter SNAP more often, ultimately creating a greater administrative burden for schools and states.
Relaxed eligibility requirements under BBCE have been found to reduce churn by 26 percent while increasing households’ savings and financial well-being, according to an Urban Institute report. Implementation has also been shown to reduce state's administrative costs by 7 percent per case, according to an analysis published by the Food Research and Action Center .
In addition, it's estimated that ending BBCE would undercut the application process for other assistance programs that use SNAP as a proxy to streamline eligibility. For example, children in households that receive SNAP are automatically eligible for free school meals.
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“It is very ironic that at a time of increased interest in efficiency, there are a lot of proposals on the table right now that would dramatically increase red tape and make it a lot harder for families to access the benefits they need to make ends meet,” Share Our Strength associate policy director Carolyn Vega said.
Gabriella Paul covers the stories of people living paycheck to paycheck in the greater Tampa Bay region for WUSF. She's also a Report for America corps member. Here’s how you can share your story with her.
