USDA proposal could cut SNAP for 6.3 million nationwide

The U.S. Department of Agriculture proposed a rule Nov. 10 that would cut food assistance for an estimated 6.3 million people nationwide, and D.C. residents face some of the steepest fallout.

The proposed rule, published in the Federal Register, would eliminate what is known as broad-based categorical eligibility (BBCE) for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). BBCE lets states extend SNAP to households that receive non-cash benefits through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, even if those households' income or assets exceed standard federal limits.

About 20% of D.C. residents receive SNAP, according to the D.C. Policy Center. Of those, 54% live in households with children.

Federal officials have not released estimates showing how many D.C. residents specifically would lose assistance under the proposed rule, as first reported by the Washington Informer.

What the rule would change

The USDA estimates 3.2 million households containing 6.3 million people would lose SNAP by fiscal year 2029, the first year the rule would reach full effect. The agency projects $44.6 billion in reduced federal food assistance over five years.

According to the USDA's regulatory impact analysis, 17.6% of current SNAP participants would lose benefits because their income or resources exceed federal limits. Forty-six states use BBCE as of December 2025, and the USDA said the practice has expanded eligibility beyond what Congress intended.

The ripple effects extend to school meals. The USDA estimates nearly 1.8 million children would lose automatic eligibility for free school meals. Most could still qualify through separate applications, but about 93,000 would shift to reduced-price meals and 28,000 would pay full price. Another 42,000 children could lose summer nutrition benefits. An estimated 5,500 women, infants and children would become ineligible for the federal WIC nutrition program.

D.C.'s compounding costs

The proposed rule lands on top of cost shifts Congress already enacted through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Those changes are separate from the categorical eligibility proposal but compound the financial pressure on the District.

The D.C. Policy Center projected in an October analysis that the District faces approximately $84 million in additional annual SNAP expenses beginning in fiscal year 2030, driven by OBBBA provisions. That figure assumes no changes in participation, spending or payment error rates.

The $84 million breaks down into two pieces. Starting in fiscal year 2027, D.C. must cover 75% of SNAP administrative costs, up from 50%. The D.C. Policy Center estimated that shift alone at $39.3 million. On top of that, OBBBA created a cost-sharing formula tied to a state's payment error rate. D.C.'s most recent error rate, for fiscal year 2024, was 17.38%. At that level, the District would owe 15% of its SNAP benefit costs, an estimated $48 million starting in fiscal year 2030.

D.C. Policy Center researcher Meredith Gavin wrote that these expenses "cannot be filled by a one-time rearrangement of funds or single-year revenue increases; they are recurring expenses needed to maintain an existing program on which thousands of D.C. residents rely."

Separately, 21,000 D.C. SNAP recipients already face new work requirements under OBBBA, according to the D.C. Policy Center. The District has set up a volunteer program to help recipients meet those requirements without losing benefits.

School funding at risk

SNAP changes could also hit D.C. school budgets. The District's per-student funding formula uses SNAP participation to determine a student's at-risk status. If students lose SNAP eligibility, schools could lose at-risk funding even though family incomes haven't changed.

In the 2025-26 school year, 17 D.C. schools had student populations hovering between 40% and 50% at-risk, the threshold for higher funding, according to the D.C. Policy Center.

Criticism and comment deadline

Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota, the ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, called the proposal "heartless and cruel," the Washington Informer reported.

The public comment period closes Dec. 10. Comments can be submitted online at regulations.gov, by email to [email protected], or by mail to the SNAP Program Development Division at 5601 Sunnyside Ave., Beltsville, MD 20705.