Safety net programs, such as SNAP, are still at risk.
7/1/2025 – Tulsa, OK: Hunger Free Oklahoma is sounding the alarm about the advancement of Congress’ proposed changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that would shift the burden onto states like Oklahoma and weaken a program millions rely on to feed their families.
“SNAP is the most effective, efficient, and essential anti-hunger program in the country, not just for families, but for local economies,” said Chris Bernard, CEO for Hunger Free Oklahoma. “These proposals don’t fix anything. The proposals are not about efficiency or effectiveness; they are simply designed to push people off or keep people from accessing a benefit to reach an arbitrary number of cost reductions.”
Today, a package of legislation that includes shifting SNAP benefit costs to states beginning in 2028, cleared the Senate by one vote. For Oklahoma, this Senate version could mean up to $270 million in new annual costs, depending on how error rates are calculated—often influenced by outdated systems and complex eligibility rules.
“The proposed SNAP changes would pass unfunded mandates down to states where budgets are already stretched thin. Forcing Oklahoma to shoulder more of the cost of feeding our neighbors will only harm families and weaken local economies,” said Jessica Dietrich, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy for Hunger Free Oklahoma.
The Senate also maintained the House proposal that raises the state’s share of SNAP administrative costs from 50% to 75%, which disregards the fact that eligibility work is already costly and under-resourced. Eligibility staff are often paid low wages and face high turnover, which drives up costs. Investing in that workforce would be a more effective solution than increasing the state’s share of the bill.
Several other changes in the proposal would limit benefits or make it harder for people to qualify for SNAP, thus increasing food insecurity across the nation, including:
- Limits on Benefit Updates: Freezes updates to the Thrifty Food Plan, which sets benefit levels, ignoring rising food costs for the nearly 700,000 Oklahomans who rely on SNAP.
- Expanded Work Requirements: Increases the age for work requirements from 54 to 64 and redefines what counts as a dependent child, potentially affecting over 100,000 Oklahomans. Additionally, the Senate version eliminates veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and youth who aged out of foster care from being exempt from these work requirements.
- Cuts to Nutrition Education: Repeals funding for the SNAP-Ed program, which helps thousands of Oklahoma families make healthier food choices and eliminates a proven tool for reducing long-term healthcare costs.
“Congress is rushing this bill through to meet an artificial deadline, rather than taking the time and care to review these policies that will impact hundreds of thousands of their constituents. This bill also adds more red tape for states running these programs on archaic software with understaffed and underfunded agencies. Families who are simply working to make ends meet are the ones who will ultimately suffer,” commented Dietrich.
Hunger Free Oklahoma urges policymakers to reject harmful provisions that would weaken SNAP and instead support measures that strengthen the program, ensuring every American has reliable access to the food they need to thrive.
We also call on our fellow Oklahomans to take action: contact your members of Congress today and urge them to protect and strengthen SNAP for the well-being of our communities.
###
Hunger Free Oklahoma is an anti-hunger organization dedicated to improving food access for all Oklahoma. HFO leverages the power of collaboration to solve hunger in Oklahoma by improving systems, policies, and practices. Learn more at HungerFreeOK.org.
SNAP, the nation’s largest anti-hunger program, is a federally funded, state-administered nutrition program. In 2024, SNAP served nearly 700,000 Oklahomans and brought back over $1.5 billion of our tax dollars to our economy.