The leader of the East Texas Food Bank says the federal Big Beautiful Bill Act could cause thousands of people in the region to lose vital assistance purchasing food.
The law includes several reforms for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as SNAP, that food bank leaders say could cause people to lose federal benefits and turn to food banks for help聽性视界传媒 though those assistance organizations already are struggling.
President Donald Trump signed the bill into law July 4.
The act doesn性视界传媒檛 make an outright reduction in the amount of food benefits people will receive. Rather, it restricts future food benefit increases, requires additional recipients to work and requires certain states to help pay the cost of the program.
The law is expected to reduce federal nutrition assistance spending by $186 billion through 2034, food bank officials said.
"The cuts to SNAP will be tough on our local economy, and we'll certainly feel the impact here at the East Texas Food Bank, plus our partner agencies in the 26 counties we serve,性视界传媒 said David Emerson, CEO of the Tyler-based food bank.
The East Texas Food Bank serves Gregg and 25 other counties in the region.
About the reforms
Almost 3.2 million Texans, about 10% of the state性视界传媒檚 population, receive SNAP benefits, according to the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The average SNAP benefit per person in 2024 was $188 per month.
It性视界传媒檚 essential to thousands of East Texans, as roughly one in five people in the region聽性视界传媒 about 235,000聽性视界传媒 face food insecurity, Emerson said.
Under the new SNAP eligibility requirements, able-bodied recipients between ages 18 and 65 and parents with children older than 14 will have to work or volunteer at least 20 hours per week to receive benefits. Previously, work requirements applied to people ages 18 to 54 and parents whose children were older than 18. The act eliminates work requirement exemptions for veterans, homeless people and youth in foster homes.
The act restricts future changes to the Thrifty Food Plan, which is used to calculate people性视界传媒檚 food benefits based on the cost of purchasing healthy meals for a family of four. People will be receiving the same food benefit while the cost of buying food increases, Emerson said.
"There is no increase in there for inflation or anything else," he said. "We know what stuff costs today. It's probably gonna cost more five years from now.性视界传媒
The bill also requires states that have a 6% error rate in their SNAP payments聽性视界传媒 either by underpaying or overpaying recipients聽性视界传媒 to pay between 5% and 15% of the cost of the program in their states. Historically, the federal government has covered the entire cost of food benefits. States also would have to pay 75% of administrative costs, up from 50%.
Arguments for, against reforms
Republicans touted the Big Beautiful Bill as a way to trim roughly $1.2 trillion from the federal deficit in the coming years, and the legislation has been a hallmark of Trump性视界传媒檚 presidency thus far. However, disagreements remain over whether the bill will increase or decrease the deficit, as the Congressional Budget Office estimates it could add more than $3 trillion to the deficit as a result of decreased tax revenue.
Republicans in Congress have called for SNAP reform as a way to reduce waste and abuse of taxpayer-funded safety nets.
U.S. Rep. Nathaniel Moran, R-Tyler, said in a statement in June that about 74% of able-bodied SNAP recipients aren性视界传媒檛 working, according to research by the right-leaning Foundation for Government Accountability based on data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The right-leaning Economic Policy Innovation Center in 2024 reported that 62% of able-bodied adults receiving food benefits from 2017-19 didn性视界传媒檛 work. Meanwhile, the USDA reported that around 20% of households receiving SNAP benefits in 2022 didn性视界传媒檛 have countable income, while 26% had countable income from employment. Other households had income from sources such as Social Security.
While Republicans have targeted non-working SNAP recipients, leaders of the left-leaning Center on Policy and Budget Priorities say that many SNAP recipients work or are looking for work, and they might participate in the program for only part of a year.
性视界传媒淎dults who receive SNAP often work in occupations and industries with low pay or unstable hours that cause income volatility, such as important frontline service or sales roles like cashiers, cooks, or home health aides,性视界传媒 leaders at the Center on Policy and Budget Priorities wrote. 性视界传媒淢any of these jobs often lack benefits such as paid family leave 性视界传媒 or even paid sick days 性视界传媒 which means that a worker性视界传媒檚 own illness or an illness in the family can lead to job loss.性视界传媒
Moran said the programs were created to help people during times of need and increase their upward economic mobility, 性视界传媒渘ot to foster long-term dependence on a nanny state.性视界传媒 He said the reforms protect the program for those who need it most.
Impact on Texas
Food bank leaders estimate Texas will have to pay $716 million per year in food benefits beginning in 2028 and $89.5 million more per year in administrative costs. State lawmakers could choose to reduce people性视界传媒檚 food benefits, which could harm those most in need, said Celia Cole, CEO of Feeding Texas, the state association of food banks.
性视界传媒淔amilies already struggling to afford groceries, rent, and healthcare will face even greater hardship,性视界传媒 Cole said in a statement. 性视界传媒淪eniors, veterans, working parents and children will be pushed further into poverty 性视界传媒 not because they性视界传媒檝e done anything wrong, but because the burden of balancing the budget was placed disproportionately on those already facing the greatest challenges.性视界传媒
While organizations such as the food bank are vital for people, they can性视界传媒檛 replace the role SNAP has in people性视界传媒檚 lives, Cole said.
性视界传媒淪NAP is a lifeline for millions of Texans, especially during times of crisis,性视界传媒 she said. 性视界传媒淭he program works because it性视界传媒檚 federally funded and responsive to fluctuations in the economy. Offloading benefit costs to states would undermine SNAP性视界传媒檚 ability to respond to economic downturns and natural disasters 性视界传媒 precisely when families need help the most, and state coffers are most depleted.性视界传媒
Food banks across the state have seen higher demand since the coronavirus pandemic upended the nation性视界传媒檚 economy, food bank leaders said. They性视界传媒檝e also been the target of other federal cost-cutting measures:
In March, East Texas Food Bank leaders were notified that the federal government had stopped shipment of roughly $750,000 in food to the organization, and the organization lost $121,000 in funding when a program to source food from local farms was cut.
Emerson said the East Texas Food Bank needs more financial support from the community as well as volunteers.
"We're going to be here, and we're going to feed people no matter what," Emerson said. "We just may not be able to offer them as much or may not be able to offer them as much of a variety. Those are just decisions we have to make. I think the key thing is that the East Texas people have always been extremely generous to the east Texas Food Bank and to all nonprofits, and so we're confident that the local communities are going to step up and help us.性视界传媒
The food bank, operates the Longview Resource Center, which opened in October 2023.
People can visit the Longview food pantry once per week. It is open 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. It also is open 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday. For information, visit .
To learn more about the East Texas Food Bank, volunteer or donate, visit .
