Over half a million people may lose their food stamps

The Trump administration’s recent decision will limit states’ access to give food stamps to residents. Nearly 700,000 people will lose their food stamps from these rule changes

The change will mostly affect childless able bodied people between the ages of 18 and 49. Currently, this group must work 20 hours a week for more than three months over the course of three years. Under the new rules, states with 6% unemployment or higher will be limited.

According to the USDA, this rule could save the government $5.5 billion in five years. The USDA found 2.9 million adults on the SNAP rolls that did not have disabilities or dependents. 2.1 of the 2.9 were not working.

Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan is not in favor of this new rule because the rule change is simply stripping people of their benefits without helping them find work. She continued by saying

“This Administration is out of touch with families who are struggling to make ends meet by working seasonal jobs or part time jobs with unreliable hours,” Stabenow said. “Seasonal holiday workers, workers in Northern Michigan’s tourism industry, and workers with unreliable hours like waiters and waitresses are the kinds of workers hurt by this proposal.”

According to NBC, “97% of the SNAP participants who would be affected by this change live in poverty” and “88 percent have household incomes at or below 50 percent of the poverty level or less than $600 a month.”

In addition to this change, the Trump administration plans to reform the way families are automatically rolled into SNAP when they receive other forms of federal aid and cap deductions made for housing and utility costs. Overall, 3.7 million fewer people would receive SNAP due to these changes.