More than 3 million people have left SNAP in the six months since enactment of Trump’s economic agenda—the One Big Beautiful Bill Act—marking one of the fastest declines in participation in decades.
Originally published by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “Post-Megabill Drop in SNAP Participation Is Steepest in Decades.”
Participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fell by more than 3 million people (8 percent) nationwide between July 2025 and January 2026—the sharpest decline in decades.
The drop followed the enactment of HR 1, the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the Republican megabill that made unprecedented cuts to the program.
SNAP typically expands to meet needs, then shrinks when economic conditions improve.
It took over three years for the caseload to drop by over 3 million people (7 percent) between its peak in December 2012 and February 2016, during the recovery following the Great Recession.
But economic conditions haven’t been improving, as the number of people receiving SNAP has plummeted in recent months.
The last time there was such a steep decrease in participation in such a short period of time—other than temporary spikes following natural disasters—was nearly three decades ago, after Congress enacted very deep cuts to SNAP (then the Food Stamp Program) in 1996.
SNAP participation dropped by 9.4 percent (2.2 million people) in six months between March and September 1997.
The Steepest Caseload Collapse in Decades
SNAP participation has fallen in every state and in some, the drop is particularly alarming.
More recent data from state agencies show that the number of Arizonans who participated in SNAP in March 2026 is less than half the number that participated last July.
SNAP participation has dropped by more than 10 percent since July 2025 in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Virginia, according to state agencies’ data, and by more than 10 percent in Nevada and Oklahoma, according to USDA data.
This dramatic six-month drop cannot be explained by a rapid improvement in people’s economic well-being or reduced need for help affording food. Labor force data show that the unemployment rate was flat between July 2025 and March 2026 (the most recent data available).
A more likely explanation for why people are losing access to food assistance is that states are now facing new challenges as they respond to the cuts in HR 1, the largest in the program’s history.
The deep cuts to federal funding for SNAP are shifting significant new costs to states.
HR 1 also dramatically expands SNAP’s already harsh and ineffective provision, taking away people’s benefits for not meeting the work requirement. And it ended eligibility for many people with a lawful immigration status.
The decline in SNAP participation is likely to grow in the coming months, as states fully implement the HR 1 eligibility restrictions and take further action to lower their error rates.
SNAP is our nation’s most effective tool to reduce hunger and food insecurity. It is highly responsive to economic conditions and needs.
The number of SNAP participants rises rapidly during economic downturns and falls as the effects of economic recovery reach more low-income households. After unemployment insurance, SNAP historically has been the most responsive federal program in assisting families and communities during economic decline.
SNAP participation grew rapidly in response to each of the four recessions in the last 30 years, as more people lost employment or income and more households qualified and applied for benefits. It then slowly declined as the economy improved.
Caseloads expanded significantly between 2007 and 2011, largely due to the Great Recession and its subsequent slow recovery. Caseloads peaked at 47 million in December 2012, then declined over the next six years.
It took over three years for the caseloads to drop by more than 3 million (7 percent) during the recovery between December 2012 and February 2016.
SNAP expanded again in 2020 and 2021, but by a smaller amount than in the Great Recession, to meet the needs of low-income households during the pandemic.
Following a slight decline in 2022, caseloads increased in 2023, when pandemic-related benefits and state flexibilities that made the program more accessible ended and food inflation hit historic highs.
From 2023 to 2024, the number of participants fluctuated between 42 and 43 million people nationally.
A Legacy of Gutting the Safety Net
Policymakers have made the mistake of weakening the program before, making it harder for people to get the help they need to afford groceries.
It’s been almost three decades since SNAP participation dropped this rapidly, after Congress enacted very deep cuts to SNAP in 1996.
The number of people participating in SNAP dropped by 9.4 percent, or 2.2 million people, between March and September 1997.
At that time, policymakers cut SNAP by eliminating eligibility for many low-income legal immigrants, newly implementing SNAP’s harsh and ineffective work requirements, and cutting benefits across the board. The economy was also expanding at that time (unlike current economic conditions), but those who were cut off by the newly implemented work requirements experienced high rates of poverty and food insecurity, indicating that many were left out of the economic boom.
By 2002, the share of eligible people participating in SNAP had dropped to its lowest level: 54 percent.
By the early 2000s, policymakers of both parties were concerned that eligible households facing difficulty affording food were falling off the program or failing to apply. In response, Congress took steps to improve access to SNAP, and by 2012 the share of eligible people receiving SNAP rose to more than 80 percent.
Shifting the Fiscal Burden, Punishing Families
HR 1 includes new incentives for states to undertake drastic efforts to reduce their error rate and costs. States will soon be required to pay for part of SNAP benefits costs, totaling billions of dollars across all states, creating enormous fiscal challenges.
Many steps states are taking to lower error rates in response to this cost shift could make it harder for eligible people to access SNAP, driving down caseloads. For example, states such as Illinois and Georgia are now requiring most households to recertify their eligibility twice as often, putting families at risk of losing SNAP if they can’t navigate the additional red tape.
In the face of massive new costs, states may even withdraw from the program altogether, terminating food assistance for all low-income people, including children, seniors, people with disabilities and veterans.
Congress must delay the cost shift before even more people lose the food assistance they need.
