The state is expected to lose hundreds of millions of dollars per year that flow from the federal government to poor Ohioans to buy groceries, a result of changes made by Republicans in the Statehouse and the U.S. Congress

The most significant cuts stem from the federal legislation, and some pieces of the bills don’t take effect until 2028. But once fully implemented, they could blow an estimated $416 million per year hole in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which would either force lawmakers to find new money for the program or cut services or benefits. 

Under the new federal rules, state governments must cover a share of the cost of the program benefits – a first in SNAP’s 61-year history. 

Plus, the new rules will force the state to absorb a greater share of the current costs of administering the program. And because Ohio’s program is administered at the county level, county governments also face millions in new costs to prop up the already-underfunded programs, according to interviews with policy experts and fiscal analyses of the new legislation. 

“Counties are going to have a very, very hard time coming up with that amount of money, especially a year or two down the line,” said Jon Honeck, executive director of the Ohio Job and Family Services Directors Association. “It will be very difficult, if not impossible. We’re very concerned about it.”

What is SNAP?

While food stamps in America trace back to the 1930s, the modern SNAP program began in 1964 as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s “War on Poverty.” Under current rules, those earning up to 130% of the poverty line – about $40,500 per year for a family of four – are eligible. Some 1.5 million Ohioans today rely on an average of $171 per month in benefits, according to state data, provided in the form of what looks like a credit card and can only be spent on groceries. 

That’s about $256 million per month in Ohio.

Of the beneficiaries in Ohio, 62% of the families include children, and more than 43% are in families with older adults or disabled people in the household, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. 

Both the state and federal budgets relied on deep cuts to social services in part to help pay for tax cuts, of which most of the benefits flow to high-income earners. The federal changes alone are expected to purge 3 million people from SNAP nationally by 2034, according to congressional budget analysts. That comes in the same legislation that’s estimated to end Medicaid coverage, publicly funded health insurance, for 11.8 million low-income Americans. 

Ohio needs to find $318 million to pay for SNAP benefits, analysis says

The biggest policy change from the federal legislation forces states to pay between 5% and 15% of the total benefit allotment. The specific amount depends on their “error rate” – a measure of underpayments or overpayments to beneficiaries. 

Ohio’s most recent error rate of 9%, while below the national average of about 11%, still means the state will need to come up with an extra $318 million to cover costs. That’s according to an estimate from the Center for Community Solutions, a Cleveland-based think tank. 

This would take effect in fiscal year 2028. 

A spokesman for the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services declined to comment on the projection and said the department hasn’t yet produced any economic analysis of the new laws. 

The bill also expands Ohio’s current work requirements, which means new reporting requirements to boot. Having more of these bureaucratic touch points risks increasing the error rate, according to Joree Novotny, executive director of the Ohio Association of Food Banks, which oversees local coordinators who help pantry visitors enroll in SNAP. 

The cocktail of changes could cause a snowball effect, she said. A higher error rate means losing more SNAP dollars. And the legislation removes forgiveness from the formula that calculates the error rate. All this means Ohio will lose more federal SNAP funds. 

State, counties need another $98 million for SNAP administration 

While the federal government has always paid the full cost of program benefits, it historically split administrative costs with states 50-50. 

The new rules require states to cover 75% of the cost, with the federal government covering the rest. Because Ohio’s program is county-administered, counties help cover those costs. They now face new requirements without any new funds. 

The Center for Community Solutions estimated this will cost the state and its counties about $98 million per year. 

Local officials told Cuyahoga County Council last week they expect $7 million in increased costs to the county to administer food assistance benefits to the 193,000 residents currently enrolled. 

The new costs lean against an already over-burdened system. Several said in interviews that SNAP applicants are advised to call county offices in the morning because they can sometimes get stuck on hold for hours. 

Katie Gideon, who oversees a team at the Greater Cleveland Food Bank assisting residents signing up for SNAP, said the application process requires proof of income, expenses, and identification, plus a long and mandatory interview. Those burdens fall on applicants who tend to be less computer-literate, older, or have different kinds of disabilities. 

“SNAP is a very administratively burdened program for the community and individuals that work in the program,” she said. “Any change or addition to the program will add requirements for both sides.”

In Franklin County, the state’s second biggest population of SNAP recipients behind Cuyahoga, staff at the Department of Jobs and Family Services are still trying to get their heads around the new rules, according to spokesman Bart Logan, though he expects a “significant burden” financially. 

While cautioning that the numbers are estimates, he said the new work requirements will reach 9,000 adults in the 55 to 65 age range, and 4,000 SNAP households with children in the 14-17 range.

“I certainly hope [the state] will also be providing counties with resources and assistance to help notify and educate folks who are newly subjected to the expanded work requirements,” he said. 

SNAP work requirement expanded 

To be eligible for SNAP in Ohio under current law, an able-bodied adult without dependents aged 18 to 54 must either work, study, undergo job training, or volunteer for 20 hours per week. They also need to prove as much to the state via paystubs, timecards and other documentation. 

Federal law allows states to apply for waivers for these rules pending unemployment rates and job availability. However, a change enacted in the new state budget prohibits officials from applying for such a waiver. 

Additionally, the federal legislation expands the work requirements to those up to 64 years old. This is a population the government explicitly defines as “elderly,” according to Rachel Cahill, a consultant who advocates for more generous SNAP policies. It also imposes the work requirements on parents of children 14 and up, veterans and homeless people. 

Asylees, refugees lose SNAP 

Those granted refugee, asylum, or parole status by the federal government on humanitarian grounds (well-founded fears of religious persecution, violence or war) can currently qualify for SNAP benefits. This ends under the federal legislation, according to LULAC, a pro-immigration advocacy group. 

ODJFS didn’t answer questions as to how many such people currently receive SNAP benefits in Ohio. 

Will SNAP benefits shrink?

Not in the short run, according to all those interviewed.

Down the road, benefits could shrink pending how and whether states find replacement funding. 

“It’s hard to know what options states will have. It seems they’ll either have to raise revenues, cut services they’re currently funding to come up with around $400 million total in Ohio’s case, or try to cut or reduce benefits and participation through some other means,” Novotny said. “It’s really difficult and concerning to fathom.”

$7.5 million in state food bank cuts

Alongside the SNAP cuts, the state budget slashes food purchase program funding for the Ohio Association of Food Banks. 

State lawmakers cut assistance for the association by 25%, from $32 million to $24.55 million, Novotny said. Those dollars buy wholesale proteins, fruits, dairy products and produce to distribute to warehouses and pantries around the state. And the dollars remaining don’t go as far these days amid a stubbornly inflationary economy. 

Plus, Reuters reported that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, an arm of President Donald Trump’s administration, earlier this year cancelled the pandemic-era Local Food Purchase Assistance Program, which funded about $500 million for food banks, plus the same amount for the Emergency Food Assistance Program, which stocks food banks. 

“The reality is that we’re experiencing several simultaneous cuts and reductions in support,” Novotny said. “We aren’t in a position to replace SNAP for whole swaths of people.”