USDA proposes narrowing automatic SNAP eligibility, saying 6.3 million people would lose benefits

The U.S. Agriculture Department proposed two rules Tuesday that would change who gets SNAP, the federal food aid called CalFresh in California, according to notices in the Federal Register.  Both are proposals.  Public comments are due Dec. 10.

The first rule would end automatic eligibility for households that get only non-cash services paid for by TANF, the federal welfare program.  Only households getting TANF cash aid would still qualify automatically; others would have income and savings checked against federal limits.  USDA estimates 3.2 million households with 6.3 million people would lose SNAP in the 2029 federal budget year, cutting benefit spending about $44.6 billion over five years.  USDA says the change targets aid to needy households.

The second rule puts into regulation the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act's changes to SNAP's three-month time limit for adults who can work.  It changes who is exempt, tightens waivers for high-unemployment areas and drops “imminently homeless” from the homeless definition.

In Santa Clara County, 122,993 people in 82,250 households got CalFresh in September, state data show.  The county is not on the state's list of counties where the time limit is waived.

Comments go to regulations.gov under dockets FNA-2026-0661 and FNA-2025-0368.

Source:  Federal Register, Reforming Categorical Eligibility; Federal Register, Modification to Work Requirements; CDSS CalFresh Data Dashboard