Louisiana SNAP changes and impacts since OBBBA

Oct 19

Big Picture impact: LDH data show 805,633 SNAP recipients in July 2025 and 635,406 in June 2026, a drop of 170,227 (about 21%). Children fell from 363,165 to 281,101, or 82,064 (22.6%).

Federal changes (One Big Beautiful Bill Act- July 4, 2025)

Work requirements: Adults 55 to 64, parents of children 14 to 17, homeless people, veterans, and people aging out of foster care must now meet the ABAWD work requirements. That means 80 hours a month of work, volunteering, or training - or benefits are limited to three months in 36. Changes took effect Nov. 1, 2025. Area waivers now require unemployment above 10 percent.
Non-citizens: The change took effect on July 4, 2025, and states apply it to new applicants and at recertification. A court order extended the quality-control grace period through April 9, 2026. Refugees, asylees, and parolees lost eligibility. Citizens, green card holders, Cuban and Haitian entrants, and COFA* citizens remain eligible.
Benefit levels: Future reevaluations of the Thrifty Food Plan, which set the underlying market basket, must be cost-neutral and cannot happen before Oct. 1, 2027. Annual inflation adjustments continue as before.
SNAP-Ed: Federal funding for the SNAP education program ended after FY2025.
Utility allowance: Households now need an elderly or disabled member for energy assistance to automatically trigger the heating and cooling utility allowance. CBO estimates about 600,000 households nationally lose roughly $100 a month. No Louisiana-specific estimate was found.
State administrative costs: States cover 75 percent of administrative costs starting Oct. 1, 2026. That costs Louisiana $42.3 million more in the fiscal year that began July 1, and about $56 million a year at full-year rates.
State benefit costs: States pay 0% of benefits below a 6% error rate, 5% at 6 to 8%, 10% at 8 to 10%, and 15% at 10% or above. USDA says this applies from Oct. 1, 2027 for most states. Louisiana's FY2025 rate is 8.14%, which falls in the 10% tier. Ten percent of $1.6 billion to $1.87 billion in annual benefits is roughly $160 to $187 million a year. A draft farm bill would delay the start to October 2028, but has not been passed.

*COFA stands for Compacts of Free Association, the agreements between the United States and three Pacific island nations: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.

State changes

No work-requirement waivers: Act 308 of 2024 (R.S. 46:332) LDH can no longer seek, apply for, accept, or renew work-requirement waivers, or use the state's option to grant discretionary exemptions, unless federal law expressly requires it.
New agency: The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) took over SNAP administration on Oct. 1, 2025, with no eligibility changes. SNAP Employment and Training moved to the Louisiana Workforce Commission. SNAP-Ed no longer exists.
Food restrictions: Soft drinks, energy drinks, and candy are barred from SNAP purchases starting Feb. 18, 2026, and no household can opt out. The demonstration runs through Feb. 17, 2028. USDA is taking public comment until Oct. 15, 2026.

Effects on families

Recertification: In June 2026, LDH closed 64.46% of SNAP cases up for recertification, up from 46.15% in June 2025. A closed case means the household's benefits ended at that recertification, although households can reapply.
Closure reasons: About 75% of closures were procedural, such as not responding to a request for information. LDH's closure reports list zero closures for failed citizenship or unmet ABAWD hours in the months reviewed. However, that is LDH's coding, and it does not rule out that new requirements drive these procedural closures.
Benefit size: The average is about $189 per recipient per month (LDH, July to December 2025). The FY2026 maximum for a family of four is $994 and the minimum is $24, through Sept. 30, 2026.
School meals: The state will not know the impact on free meals until its April 1, 2027 eligibility count. More than 90% of Orleans public schools use Community Eligibility so could have major impact.