SNAP Back Act of 2025
This bill, introduced as the SNAP Back Act of 2025, would reinstate exemptions from SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) work requirements for three groups: homeless individuals, veterans, and former foster youth. It amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 by adding new categories to the exemptions for able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWD) who do not have to meet work requirements to receive SNAP benefits. Specifically, it adds three new subparagraphs (H, I, and J) to Section 6(o) to cover these groups. For former foster youth, the eligibility is limited to those who are 24 or younger and who were in foster care under state responsibility on or after age 18 (or up to a higher age allowed by state choice under the Social Security Act). The effect would be to reduce or remove the work-requirement obligations for these individuals while they receive SNAP benefits. The bill is titled the “SNAP Back Act of 2025.” It would not create new programs but would change current SNAP work-rule exemptions, potentially affecting SNAP caseloads and administrative processes once enacted into law.
Key Points
- 1The bill is named the SNAP Back Act of 2025 and is introduced in the House.
- 2It amends Section 6(o) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to modify SNAP work-requirement exemptions.
- 3It adds three new exempt categories:
- 4- H) a homeless individual;
- 5- I) a veteran;
- 6- J) an individual who is 24 years old or younger and who was in foster care under state responsibility on or after age 18 (or at a higher age as allowed by state law under SSA 475(8)(B)(iii)).
- 7The mechanism of the change is a structural edit to the existing exemptions list (removing a closing “or” and a period, and adding the new categories), effectively reinstating these exemptions within the ABAWD framework.
- 8The bill specifically targets vulnerable populations who may face barriers to employment, aiming to reduce administrative barriers to SNAP eligibility for these groups.