Nearly 70,000 Montgomery County residents who rely on federal food assistance face benefit cuts or new eligibility hurdles after changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program took effect Thursday, Oct. 1.

The changes stem from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), signed by President Trump on July 4, 2025. The law expands who must work to keep SNAP benefits, tightens immigrant eligibility and shifts more program costs to states, according to the Maryland Department of Human Services.

Nearly 30,000 are children.

The average monthly benefit in Maryland is $180 per customer. Those dollars add up to nearly $12 million in revenue for Montgomery County grocery stores and farmers markets, Montgomery Community Media reported.

Who loses eligibility

The law's biggest change expands SNAP work requirements to able-bodied adults ages 18 to 64. The previous cutoff was 54. Parents with children 14 and older must now meet work rules too. Exemptions that previously covered veterans, people experiencing homelessness and young adults aging out of foster care were removed.

Refugees, asylees and other lawful immigrants now need a Green Card to receive SNAP. Statewide, up to 80,000 additional Marylanders must report work hours to keep their benefits, according to the Maryland Department of Human Services.

Families that still qualify will see an increase of about $7 in their monthly benefits, according to Montgomery Community Media.

School meals at risk

The cuts ripple beyond grocery budgets. Free and reduced-price school meal programs will be affected because of their direct certification link with SNAP, according to Heather Bruskin, director of Montgomery County's Office of Food Systems Resilience.

"We are seeing thousands of residents who are impacted by federal changes to SNAP in Montgomery County as well as across Maryland," Bruskin said. "That includes families who receive fewer benefits due to changes in how benefit amounts are calculated, as well as changes related to work requirements."

National and state picture

Nationally, more than 5 million people have lost food stamps since the law's enactment, according to an analysis by the Food Research and Action Center cited by Maryland Matters. SNAP participation has dropped in every state except Alaska.

In Maryland, about 40,000 residents have lost access to food assistance over the past year. The state's SNAP program serves more than 680,000 people each month, including nearly 270,000 children.

Starting in October 2027, states with SNAP payment error rates of 6% or higher will also be required to pay between 5% and 15% of benefit costs. States already must cover 75% of administrative costs under the new law.

Local response

Montgomery County plans to partner with more than 70 nonprofit organizations, local farms, health care providers and school partners to invest more than $12 million a year in food security programs, Bruskin said.

Councilmember Andrew Friedson, who co-chaired a Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments meeting on Sept. 18 focused on federal SNAP changes and regional food insecurity, wrote on X that Montgomery County was the only county in the Washington region where food insecurity declined, dropping from 35% to 31%.

Residents with questions about the SNAP changes can call 1-800-332-6347 or contact Montgomery County's local department of social services.