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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 5h

The bottom line: OBBBA’s changes to SNAP, from state cost-sharing to work requirements to waivers, will significantly impair the program’s response to recessions—at a time of uncertainty about the direction of the economy. www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...

SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will significantly impair recession response - The Hamilton Project

Lauren Bauer and Diane Schanzenbach analyze how SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will affect the program’s response to recessions.

www.hamiltonproject.org

The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 5h

Waivers: OBBBA makes it nearly impossible for states to waive work requirements by place, putting in place a standard that about 40 percent of counties did not reach during the Great Recession. 4/

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 5h

Work requirements: In an economic downturn, jobs are scarce, and more workers are unemployed and trying to find a job. OBBBA subjects more SNAP participants to time limit work requirements, penalizing workers and the unemployed—especially during recessions. 3/

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 5h

State cost-sharing: For the first time in the program’s history, states will be required to pay a portion of SNAP benefits. Many states will struggle to shoulder the substantial costs of this policy change even under good economic conditions—and costs will likely increase during a recession. 2/

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 5h

SNAP plays a critical role in supporting both families and the economy during recessions. Here’s how the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) could threaten this: #FigureFriday 1/
www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...

Figure 3. Most common events experienced before receiving SNAP, 2008-12

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 1d

How does the One Big Beautiful Bill Act affect SNAP? From an unprecedented state cost-share plan to expanded work requirements, the OBBBA’s SNAP cuts undermine the program's ability to alleviate hardship for families and diminish its vital contribution to stabilizing demand during a recession.

SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will significantly impair recession response - The Hamilton Project

Lauren Bauer and Diane Schanzenbach analyze how SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will affect the program’s response to recessions.

www.hamiltonproject.org

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 2d

SNAP supports both families and the economy during recessions. But the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s SNAP cuts will make the program substantially and detrimentally less responsive to economic downturns, @laurenhlb.bsky.social and Diane Schanzenbach warn.

SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will significantly impair recession response - The Hamilton Project

Lauren Bauer and Diane Schanzenbach analyze how SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will affect the program’s response to recessions.

www.hamiltonproject.org

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 7d

October is Head Start Awareness Month.

In this #FigureFriday paper, @laurenhlb.bsky.social and Diane Schanzenbach explore Head Start’s impact on both its participants and their children: www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...

Figure 1 of "The long-term impact of the Head Start program"

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 8d

Our work permits tracker is now updated with data through August 2025:

Tracking work permit applications among eligible immigrants - The Hamilton Project

Tracking work permit applications can illuminate how changes in the pace of immigration are affecting labor supply.

www.hamiltonproject.org

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 9d

Our federal expenditures tracker lets you monitor funding to key programs and departments in real time: www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...

Tracking federal expenditures in real time - The Hamilton Project

Track federal expenditures and filter by department, program, and more. Data are updated daily.

www.hamiltonproject.org

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 11d

In @nytimes.com, @laurenhlb.bsky.social discusses recent trends in prime-age labor force participation, particularly among prime-age women with young children: www.nytimes.com/2025/09/22/b...

The share of women in their prime working years who are in the labor force was 77.7 percent last month, down slightly from its all-time peak last August of 78.4 percent. Among women with children under 5, that number was about 68 percent in May. That is down from an all-time high of 71 percent in September 2023, according to an analysis in July from the Hamilton Project, an economic policy research group at the Brookings Institution. The labor force participation rate for men ages 25 to 54 was 89.8 percent last month. “You are looking for those pockets of slack — and those pockets of places where those policy interventions would make a big difference,” said Lauren Bauer, the associate director of the Hamilton Project. “This is clearly one of those places.”

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 14d

@laurenhlb.bsky.social, @kristaruffini.bsky.social, and Diane Schanzenbach highlight the importance of child nutrition programs and offer policies to ensure that nutrition assistance reaches the children these programs are intended to serve: www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...

Figure 3 of "The case for and challenges of delivering in-kind nutrition assistance to children"

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 14d

On this day in 1972, an amendment to the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 authorized WIC (the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children) as a two-year pilot program. #FigureFriday

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 15d

Stay up to date with The Hamilton Project’s work by signing up for our newsletter:

Newsletter Signup - The Hamilton Project

Sign up to receive The Hamilton Project's newsletter, with updates on The Hamilton Project’s research, events, and news.

www.hamiltonproject.org

The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 16d

A federal earned paid time off program could unify our existing patchwork of state and local policies, reducing burdens for employers and employees alike. Read @betseystevenson.bsky.social’s proposal for a federal guarantee for earned paid time off:

A federal guarantee for earned paid time off - The Hamilton Project

Betsey Stevenson proposes a federal earned paid time off policy that would apply to all workers and all types of leave.

www.hamiltonproject.org

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Reposted by The Hamilton Project

Lauren Bauer @laurenhlb.bsky.social · 18d

ICYMI, this weekend USDA announced that it would not field the Food Security Supplement to the Current Population Survey - the source of information about the state of food insecurity and hunger in America - this December.

The press release is full of falsehoods:

www.fns.usda.gov/newsroom/usd...

Lauren Bauer @laurenhlb.bsky.social · 19d

This is false; I fear that whoever wrote this statement doesn’t know what these adjectives mean.

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 18d

Thinking about climate policy this week? So are we!

This #ClimateWeekNYC, explore some of THP’s past climate and energy work:

Energy and Climate - The Hamilton Project

A sustainable economy requires policies that combat climate change, mitigate its effects, and promote research and new technologies.

www.hamiltonproject.org

The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 21d

What are work requirements, and how do they affect SNAP recipients? For this week’s #FigureFriday, @laurenhlb.bsky.social and @chloeneast.bsky.social review the literature on SNAP work requirements: www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...

Figure 8, Causal estimates of the effect of ABAWD work requirement reinstatement
on labor market outcomes and SNAP participation

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 23d

In this THP proposal, Matt Marx argues that the benefits of noncompetes “accrue primarily to employers and at the expense of employees.” He offers five avenues for reform to better balance the interests of firms and workers: www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 24d

“This entire notion that states should pay in benefit amounts because their payment error rates are too high is an utterly unprecedented and untested idea.” THP’s @laurenhlb.bsky.social spoke to @alexis-madrigal.bsky.social about the budget bill’s cuts to SNAP:

Trump Cuts to SNAP Program Threaten to Increase Hunger Locally, Nationwide | KQED

We’ll talk about the impacts of Trump’s budget decision on those in need as well as the grocers and food banks that help provide food to SNAP recipients.

www.kqed.org

The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 25d

In @wsj.com, @avivaaron-dine.bsky.social discusses new data from the Census Bureau on income, poverty, and health insurance coverage: www.wsj.com/economy/cons...

Inflation Erased U.S. Income Gains Last Year

High-income households fared better than others, while women lost ground to men, according to Census Bureau data.

www.wsj.com

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The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 28d

What’s happening at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)?

Olivia Howard, @laurenhlb.bsky.social, @cmcnich.bsky.social, and Margaret Poydock use administrative data to track NLRB actions: #FigureFriday www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...