Sponsors (9)
The bill expands and protects SNAP eligibility for people in training, rehabilitation, and refugee programs—improving access and participation—while raising federal costs and creating transitional legal and administrative uncertainty that may shift burdens between federal and state governments.
Low-income households (including parents and families) are more likely to qualify for and receive higher SNAP benefits because certain training, vocational rehabilitation, and refugee program payments are excluded from countable income, increasing eligibility and benefit amounts.
Refugees and immigrants in accredited employment or refugee assistance programs are less likely to lose SNAP or have benefits reduced when they receive program payments, protecting access during participation in these programs.
Participants in vocational rehabilitation and workforce-training programs face lower financial barriers to participate because program payments will not be counted against SNAP eligibility or benefit calculations.
SNAP program costs are likely to rise because more payments are excluded from countable income, increasing federal spending and potentially requiring budget offsets or higher taxpayer costs.
State agencies and beneficiaries may face legal uncertainty and delays while USDA/FNS issues guidance to implement the changes, which could slow benefit delivery or alter prior case outcomes.
Some low-income households could lose protections or benefits if the removed statutory subsection previously operated as an entitlement or safeguard, potentially reducing eligibility for certain families.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Removes a subsection of SNAP law and excludes certain training, employment, vocational rehabilitation, and refugee-employment payments from countable household income for SNAP.
Official title: To amend the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to exempt workforce training dollars as income for supplemental nutrition assistance program beneficiaries.
Introduced April 21, 2025 by Adriano J. Espaillat · Last progress April 21, 2025
Deletes an existing statutory subsection of SNAP law and changes how SNAP counts household income by excluding certain training-, work-, rehabilitation-, and refugee-employment-related payments from countable income. The bill makes those allowances, earnings, and payments noncountable for program eligibility and benefit calculation, which can increase or preserve SNAP eligibility and benefit amounts for households with members in the specified programs.