By Dan Frosch and Inti Pacheco

Among the key pieces in the fiscal package passed last week by House Republicans: cuts to the federal program that helps low-income people pay for groceries, formerly known as food stamps.

The GOP aims to tighten work requirements, saying that too many people on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, aren't working. They also want to shift more of SNAP's costs to the states. Their plan -- which still has to be approved by the Senate -- would lead to more than $230 billion in cuts over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The federal government spent $93.8 billion on SNAP during the last fiscal year to feed an average of 41.7 million people each month. The average monthly benefit, per person, cost $187.54.

What does SNAP do?

The program distributes funds on a prepaid card to help people pay for food. Many factors determine who is eligible for SNAP and how much they receive, including household income level and size. Generally, most American households qualify for SNAP benefits if their gross income is less than about $3,380 a month, for a family of four. That represents 130% of the federal poverty level.

Able-bodied adults ages 18 to 54, without dependents, must work (or participate in employee training) for at least 20 hours a week. Otherwise, they are limited to three months of benefits in three years.

What factors drive SNAP numbers?

States administer the program with federal dollars, but have some leeway in setting eligibility rules. States also differ in how many resources they devote to the program.

Also, enrollment and costs typically rise following economic downturns, such as the 2008-09 financial crisis. The U.S. hit a peak for the monthly average number of people using SNAP -- 47.6 million -- in fiscal 2013, when the country was still recovering from that crisis.

Last fiscal year, the monthly average number of people on SNAP was down about 6 million from that peak a decade earlier. That means roughly 12% of the U.S. population is relying on the benefit.

The rate of SNAP-eligible people who enroll in the program has risen in recent years. In the 2022 fiscal year -- the most recent year measured -- a record high 88% of people who qualified for SNAP enrolled in the program.

How has the SNAP population changed?

People enrolled are getting older as the nation ages and because of more efforts to sign up eligible seniors. At the same time, the portion of SNAP recipients in households with children shrank to 47% in 2023, according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau survey data, down from 55% a decade earlier.

How have costs to the government changed?

The cost of SNAP benefits to the government jumped during the pandemic, reaching an inflation-adjusted high of $124.9 billion in 2021. This was largely attributable to an emergency benefits boost by Congress.

The program makes annual adjustments to account for cost of living changes, such as hikes in food costs caused by inflation. The average amount paid to SNAP recipients is currently down from pandemic highs because Covid-19-era emergency measures expired, but also above levels from the years heading into the pandemic.

Adjusted for inflation, SNAP's total benefit costs declined by about 25% between fiscal 2021 and 2024.

What are GOP goals?

They point to a 2022 analysis by the Agriculture Department that found that just 28% of SNAP-enrolled adults with neither dependents nor disabilities that would prevent them from working had earned income from jobs that year.

The House bill would expand the upper age limit so that able-bodied adults without dependents have to work to get SNAP benefits by 10 years, to age 64. The plan would also limit work exemptions that caregivers of children under 7 years of age can receive.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a progressive group, said nearly 11 million SNAP recipients could lose at least some food assistance under the GOP's plan. The group also said the GOP numbers don't account for how many SNAP enrollees might have lost a job and were looking for work, and that an estimated 82% of able-bodied adult SNAP users who are not living with children brought in earnings in 2023.

This explanatory article may be periodically updated.

Write to Dan Frosch at dan.frosch@wsj.com and Inti Pacheco at inti.pacheco@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 25, 2025 10:00 ET (14:00 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.