More than 22,000 New Yorkers lost their monthly food assistance benefits known as SNAP in June due to new work rules implemented by the Trump administration, city officials told Gothamist.
The numbers are the first look at what impact President Trump’s seismic changes to the federal entitlement program that feeds 1.7 million New Yorkers are having across the five boroughs. And they’re only expected to worsen in the coming months.
City officials said most of those who had their cases closed are young adults between 18-35 years old, and 44% are single men.
Starting in March, SNAP recipients had to prove they were working, volunteering or in school to keep their benefits longer than three months. The rules apply to anyone 18-64 years old and who isn’t exempt because of a medical condition or disability.
The federal overhaul to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program was signed by President Trump last summer and pushed through by Congressional Republicans who said the work rules would cut out waste and fraud and incentivize people to go back to work.
But city officials and emergency food advocates say the rules are just a way to push people off their monthly food aid.
“Access to food assistance should not depend on a person’s ability to navigate unnecessary administrative barriers,” Erin Dalton, the city’s commissioner for the Department of Social Services, said in a statement.
Dalton said though the number of closed cases in June is just 1.3% of the city’s SNAP cases, it “amounts to more than $5 million in lost food assistance each month and has a significant impact on the individuals affected — particularly young adults, who are disproportionately impacted by the expanded federal work requirements.”
Of the cases closed, 42% were in Brooklyn and 26% were in the Bronx. In about a third of affected SNAP cases, only the working-age adult member of the family who was subject to the work rules lost their benefits, meaning the monthly benefit amount for the household will be reduced, not entirely cut off.
In anticipation of the new rules, DSS officials leveraged city data from hospitals or universities in order to exempt SNAP recipients who either had a medical condition or were already enrolled in school.
Workers from the Mayor’s Public Engagement Unit also canvassed the city, door-knocking more than 6,000 at-risk households and calling to remind New Yorkers they had to comply. Some recipients said they didn’t know about the changes.
The city also partnered with more than 100 nonprofits to create volunteer opportunities for SNAP recipients to meet the new rules.
City officials said the multi-agency efforts helped more than 220,000 New Yorkers file exemptions or comply with the work rules. Already, food pantries have reported a slight uptick in demand but expect that to increase by fall, when more people lose their benefits.
Dalton said the city can still help those whose benefits were turned off. New Yorkers can call 718-SNAP-NOW for help.
