SNAP program: Nearly 11% of Suffolk recipients lose benefits as work rules go into effect

Nearly 11% of Suffolk County SNAP recipients lost their benefits following the implementation of new federal work requirements — by far the highest level in the state and more than double the percentage in New York City, new statewide data shows.

In February, before the new federal work requirements went into effect, 117,734 Suffolk residents received assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, according to figures from the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance.

But by July, after the work rules fully went into effect, that figure dropped by 12,443 to 105,291 recipients — a 10.6% decline. In comparison, upstate Monroe County ranked second, losing 5.9% of its SNAP recipients during that period, the data shows.

Meanwhile, the total financial SNAP benefits going to Suffolk residents dropped more than 12% during that period, from $25.6 million to $22.5 million, the data shows.

The number of Long Island households receiving SNAP benefits dipped from 105,591 in February to 96,995 in July, while the number of individual recipients dropped from 158,628 to 145,453, the data shows.

'SNAP benefits serve as a lifeline'

It's not immediately clear why such a high percentage of Suffolk residents lost their SNAP benefits compared with other municipalities, with some experts speculating it could point to a lack of engagement with county or community organizations; delays in processing applications or the municipality employing a more stringent evaluation of benefit availability among its participants.

Vanessa Baird-Streeter, president and chief executive of the Health & Welfare Council of Long Island, an umbrella nonprofit for about 200 human service groups across the region, said no matter the reason, Suffolk residents suffer without SNAP benefits.

"SNAP benefits serve as a lifeline for individuals and for families," Baird-Streeter said. "There's going to be more families that don't have adequate food to be able to provide for themselves or their families. And that is devastating."

Suffolk officials said more than a third of the recently disenrolled SNAP recipients were disqualified specifically because of the work requirements. The rest were taken off the rolls for failing to recertify, to submit appropriate documents or to respond to automatic state mailings or because the recipient or household had too much income to qualify.

SNAP disenrollments were not felt equally across Long Island.

For example, only 732 of Nassau County’s 40,894 SNAP recipients, or about 1.8%, lost their benefits between February and July, the data shows.

In New York City, which has the highest number of SNAP recipients in the state, with just over 1.7 million, 69,407 SNAP recipients — or 4.1% — were kicked off the rolls between February and July, state figures show.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani said his administration had assisted more than 220,000 New Yorkers at risk of losing SNAP benefits because of the new work requirements, reducing the number of people projected to lose their benefits by 65%.

"Food should not be a luxury in New York City," Mamdani said in a statement last week. "This year, our administration used every tool at our disposal to help New Yorkers hold on to the food assistance they rely on."

Across the state, 122,797 of its nearly 2.8 million SNAP recipients lost their benefits during the five month period, or about 4.4%, the data shows.

State officials said it's too soon to draw firm conclusions from the data, noting SNAP caseloads change monthly for a host of reasons and multiple months of information are necessary to determine the full impact of the work requirements.

Eligibility reopened

The work rules for SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, went into place as part of President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act,  and apply to able-bodied adults without dependents between the ages of 18 and 64 who are medically cleared to work.

The rules mandate these individuals must work at least 80 hours per month — or participate in a certain number of community service or volunteer hours  — or risk losing SNAP benefits after three months.

The GOP legislation also repealed SNAP work exemptions for the homeless, veterans and young adults aging out of foster care while limiting the ability of states to waive work requirements in areas lacking jobs.

The work requirements previously applied to adults ages 18 through 54 who are physically and mentally able to work and who didn’t have dependents under age 18.

In mid-May, local social services districts identified 186,822 able-bodied adults without dependents statewide that were subject to the new work requirements, according to the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance. By mid-September, that figure had dropped to 116,523, a reduction of 38%, the office said.

State officials said they expect that number to continue to fluctuate in the coming months as applicants come up for recertification.

On Oct. 1, the state reopened eligibility for recipients who were disenrolled from SNAP — the nation’s largest nutrition assistance program — because of the work requirements, allowing them to have their benefits temporarily reinstated for three months or until they comply with the work rules.

But individuals who re-enroll and subsequently do no not comply with the work requirements during those subsequent three months would then have to wait until October 2029 to receive three months of SNAP assistance.

David Rubel, a public policy consultant who tracks food benefit data, including SNAP, said Long Island municipalities should do a better job of promoting volunteer opportunities that would allow SNAP recipients to comply with the new regulations — a tactic New York City has employed.

"Suffolk County, in particular, has to do a better job in getting the word out there about these opportunities," Rubel said. ... "The past is the past but there's still plenty of opportunities to reverse these numbers in the next couple of months."

Among the reasons many healthy SNAP recipients do not work are caregiving responsibilities, a lack of housing, undocumented mental and physical limitations, difficulty finding a job or landing one with necessary benefits, experts said.

Food pantries see upticks

Long Island food pantries said they've seen a significant uptick in residents, particularly from Suffolk, seeking food assistance but noted it's difficult to know if the increases are directly attributable to the work requirements or connected to seasonality and other external factors.

For example, in February, Long Island Cares-The Harry Chapin Food Bank's Suffolk pantry served 154,207 individuals, said Kim Crawford, a spokeswoman for the organization. By August, that figure had leapt 34% to 207,144 residents, she said.

Nassau also experienced an increase in pantry use during that period of about 8%, the data shows.

Meanwhile, first-time Suffolk visitors to Long Island Cares more than doubled between July and August, from 3,013 to to 6,409, Crawford said.

"We cannot say that SNAP changes alone caused these increases," Crawford said. "Families are continuing to face a number of pressures, including the cost of food, housing, utilities and other basic necessities. However, the timing is notable."

Gregory May, director of government relations and strategic planning at Island Harvest Food Bank, said they've also seen an increase in the number of Long Islanders, many already struggling with high inflation and gas prices, seeking assistance since the work rules went into effect.

But May warned Island Harvest is ill-suited to make up the difference from SNAP benefits, which provide an estimated nine meals for every one meal food banks provide.

"We're an emergency food network and we will do everything we can to support our neighbors in need," May said. "But SNAP really needs to be available for as many people as possible."

SNAP recipients largely kids, elderly or disabled

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers SNAP federally, said it cannot verify New York's numbers, contending the state fails to retain required program records, does not properly verify household information, lacks a standardized screening process and has not performed administrative disqualification hearings for more than three years.

"To date, Gov. [Kathy] Hochul has refused access to the state’s participant data, meaning the Department of Agriculture can only see limited information," the agency said in a statement. "But what we can see is rather unsettling, particularly for the New York taxpayer."

In a statement, the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance said the administration was "making baseless claims to distract from the fact that they are cruelly cutting a proven effective program that millions of Americans rely on to feed themselves and their families."

The statement noted New York was transitioning to  chip card technology to prevent the theft of SNAP benefits and was working with local districts to comply with the job and volunteer requirements.

Roughly 30% of New York SNAP beneficiaries are children and another 31% are elderly or disabled, according to state figures.

The average monthly SNAP benefit in New York is $376 per household, state officials said.

Roughly 42 million people — or 1 in 8 Americans — receive SNAP benefits, according to federal data. The majority are in households with incomes below the poverty line of $33,000 for a family of four.

Newsday reported last week that Nassau and Suffolk are expected to absorb nearly $10 million in costs to support SNAP, as the Trump administration tightens eligibility requirements and moves a higher percentage of program administrative costs to municipalities.

Hochul has called on the administration to repeal or delay for at least two years the SNAP state cost-sharing provisions.