This bill amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to change how Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit amounts are calculated and to change several program rules. It replaces references to the "thrifty food plan" with a new "low-cost food plan." The bill defines the low-cost food plan as a diet for a four-person household (a man and a woman aged 19–50, a child aged 6–8, and a child aged 9–11). The Secretary must reevaluate market baskets for the low-cost food plan by December 31, 2029, and every five years after that. The cost of that diet serves as the basis for uniform household allotments, with adjustments for household size (economies of scale) and higher food costs in Hawaii and parts of Alaska. The cost will be adjusted each October 1 based on food costs in the previous June.
The bill also makes multiple conforming changes across the Act and related statutes to replace the thrifty food plan with the low-cost food plan. It changes a proviso in the benefit calculation from "8 percent" to "10 percent". The bill updates some quality-control and fiscal-year adjustment language, including amounts noted for fiscal year 2023 and a method for adjusting future amounts.
Section 3 changes deductions from income used in SNAP eligibility and benefit calculations. It creates a standard medical expense deduction set at $140 for fiscal year 2023 and then indexed for future years using the Consumer Price Index for Medical Care. States may set a higher standard medical deduction if they meet cost-neutrality standards. The bill also removes the cap on excess shelter expense deductions.
Section 4 removes a time limit provision from the Food and Nutrition Act (by striking subsection (o)) and makes many conforming amendments in SNAP and other statutes to reflect that removal.
If enacted, this bill would change how SNAP benefit amounts are calculated by using the low-cost food plan as the basis for allotments instead of the thrifty food plan. It would set a standard medical deduction amount and allow states to set higher amounts if they meet certain tests. The bill removes a shelter expense cap and removes a time limit provision from the Act. The bill text does not provide a plain-language explanation of who will gain or lose benefits or by how much.
No publicly available information on the total budgetary impact or overall cost of the bill is included in the provided text. The bill text does include specific dollar items: a standard medical deduction of $140 for fiscal year 2023 (with annual CPI indexing thereafter) and a provision adding $35,000,000 for commodities for fiscal year 2023 in one amended subsection. The bill sets timing and indexing rules for benefit adjustments but does not include a full cost estimate in the provided text.
No publicly available information.
No publicly available information.