SNAP work requirements and check-ins may limit eligibility for Illinois

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — Fewer Illinois residents may be eligible for the food assistance program SNAP under the latest policy plan signed into law by President Donald Trump last week.

Gov. JB Pritzker’s office said 360,000 people in the state could lose benefits as new eligibility guidelines, including work requirements and more frequent check-ins, are instituted.

The legislation requires individual states to cover a greater portion of those benefits, along with a majority of administrative costs.

Illinois Rep. Darin LaHood (R) pushed back against Pritzker’s claims, saying SNAP will still be there for those who need it.

“SNAP is going to be there for – again – people that can’t buy food because of a disability, or an elderly person on a fixed income,” LaHood said. “But, if you’re an able-bodied adult, and you can go out and get a job, we want you to get a job. That’s the best social service program. A J-O-B. A job.”

Nearly 2 million people in Illinois receive benefits from SNAP.

The governor’s office estimated that the state cost of funding food benefits would go from $0, as the program has been federally funded, to $705 million annually, calculated on the State’s Payment Error Rate.