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Reposted by Katie Bergh

Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 1d

Firing federal employees during a shutdown is not only illegal but must be seen for what it is: blatant extortion.

The Trump Administration is using working people and their families as pawns in a power play with no concern for who gets hurt.

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 1d

This decision means SNAP participants who live in areas where jobs are scarce in CA, CT, DC, GU, IL, KY, MI, MT, MN, ND, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OR, RI, VI, and WA will be at risk of being cut off SNAP by the program's harsh & ineffective work requirement even earlier than anticipated.

Ty Jones Cox @tyjonescox.bsky.social · 3d

The megabill limited states’ ability to request waivers of this work requirement in areas with few jobs. But citing no legal authority, USDA announced on Friday that they will be revoking previously approved waivers in 30 days, accelerating this harsh policy in many states.

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 2d

With information about how states must implement the megabill's #SNAP cuts trickling out from USDA, we've updated our timeline on when these harmful cuts will start going into effect: www.cbpp.org/research/fed...

Implementing the Harmful Republican Megabill: a Timeline | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

The Republicans’ harmful megabill, enacted through budget reconciliation on July 4, 2025, will raise costs for families and take away health coverage, food assistance, and other essentials from...

www.cbpp.org

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 2d

"The policy change under OBBBA that will most severely undercut SNAP’s role in fighting recessions is the transfer, for the first time, of significant program costs from the federal government onto states."

The Hamilton Project @hamiltonproject.org · 3d

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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Reposted by Katie Bergh

Ty Jones Cox @tyjonescox.bsky.social · 3d

Low-income families are increasingly struggling to afford groceries & other basic needs. Rather than exacerbating the harm of the megabill’s #SNAP cuts – the deepest cuts to food assistance in history – Congress & the Trump Administration should provide relief from these policies.

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 3d

How to make SNAP errors more likely:
1️⃣Pass a law adding a bunch of complex red tape to SNAP
2️⃣Make those changes go into effect immediately
3️⃣Provide no details about how states should implement those changes for months
4️⃣Then cut federal funding for states' admin costs in half

Ty Jones Cox @tyjonescox.bsky.social · 3d

At the same time, states are also facing the megabill's huge unfunded mandate for SNAP costs, which is based on how many errors states make in their SNAP programs. But errors will now be far more likely as states rush to roll out these complex policies on an unrealistic timeline.

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 3d

Many SNAP participants will start to see the impacts of the Republican megabill's SNAP cuts in late 2025 & early 2026.

But many more low-income people are at risk of losing food benefits unnecessarily because of how the Trump Administration is implementing those cuts.

Ty Jones Cox @tyjonescox.bsky.social · 3d

Last Friday, USDA issued new info about how some of the Republican megabill’s deepest #SNAP cuts will take effect. This guidance goes beyond what's required by law, setting states up to fail with implementation & increasing the risk eligible people lose SNAP unnecessarily.🧵

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Reposted by Katie Bergh

Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 9d

Apparently House Speaker Johnson described #WIC as having shut down today. That’s not true. USDA has made clear that WIC has some federal funding to stay open for now & states can keep it open when that runs out. (I expect that will be in about 2 weeks, depending on the state.)

Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 10d

Bottom line for #WIC under the shutdown: WIC should continue operating uninterrupted for about 2 weeks (varying by state) & states should use their own funds to keep it open beyond that so babies, young children & new & expecting parents don’t miss out on critical benefits.

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 10d

Important #WIC update: With available federal funding sources, WIC should be able to continue operations for now. States should also do everything they can to prevent disruption & communicate with families so they don't miss out on benefits. @zoeneuberger.bsky.social has the details 👇

Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 10d

Bottom line for #WIC under the shutdown: WIC should continue operating uninterrupted for about 2 weeks (varying by state) & states should use their own funds to keep it open beyond that so babies, young children & new & expecting parents don’t miss out on critical benefits.

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Reposted by Katie Bergh

Gideon Lukens @gidlukens.bsky.social · 11d

More than 2 in 5 veterans enrolled in the ACA marketplace will lose their coverage if premium tax credit enhancements expire, out of the 623,000 veterans who would otherwise have marketplace coverage in 2026. New Urban Institute estimates here: tinyurl.com/2bs4aj2j

tinyurl.com

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 11d

Not only is this funding a fraction of the Medicaid cuts it's supposed to make up for, there's preferable scoring for states that align with the Trump Administration's ideology - like restricting the foods SNAP can be used for, despite a lack of evidence those restrictions improve diets or health.

Gbenga Ajilore @gbenga-ajilore.bsky.social · 12d

HHS Secretary RFK Jr. stated that the $50B Rural Health Transformation Fund is the biggest infusion of federal dollars into rural health.

That is untrue - Medicaid has been, to the tune of roughly $180B per year. Read why the RHTF won't help (with @aorris.bsky.social): www.cbpp.org/blog/rural-h...

Rural Health Fund Will Do Little to Offset Harm to Rural Providers in Republican Megabill | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Medicaid provides health care for millions of people in rural areas and is vital to keeping rural hospitals financially stable. The recently enacted Republican megabill, which will cut $1.1 trillion.....

www.cbpp.org

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 12d

Important reality check from @zoeneuberger.bsky.social on the options the Trump Administration & state officials should use to prevent disruption to #WIC in the event of a government shutdown:

Zoe Neuberger @zoeneuberger.bsky.social · 12d

NEW: Despite White House statements implying that #WIC benefits for low-income families would be immediately disrupted if the government partially shuts down this week, the Trump Administration & state officials have several steps they could & should take to keep WIC running.

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 12d

The recent news that the Trump Administration is discontinuing our longest-running & most consistent survey of household food insecurity is part of a larger trend.⤵️

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities @centeronbudget.bsky.social · 12d

The Trump Administration is defunding important surveys and undermining federal statistical agencies, suppressing data that would reveal the harmful effects of the Republican megabill’s deep cuts and leaving families’ struggles harder to track. www.cbpp.org/research/pov...

Federal Data Are Disappearing as Statistical Agencies Face Budget Cuts and Political Pressure | Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Federal statistical agencies face increasingly overt politicization by the Trump Administration on top of chronic underinvestment, uncertainty, and recent and proposed budget cuts, all of which threat...

www.cbpp.org

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 18d

Overall rates of food insecurity held steady in 2020 & 2021 despite the pandemic. Food insecurity among households with kids actually reached a two-decade low in 2021.

In contrast, food insecurity increased during the Great Recession amid a less robust policy response.

Policy matters.

Lauren Bauer @laurenhlb.bsky.social · 19d

"Trends in the prevalence of food insecurity have remained virtually unchanged, regardless of an over 87% increase in SNAP spending between 2019 - 2023."

It was a massive policy accomplishment to have food security stay flat during COVID.

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

www.fns.usda.gov

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · 20d

Food insecurity won’t go away just because the Trump administration has apparently decided to stop measuring it — especially with food prices rising & the deepest cuts to SNAP in history beginning to go into effect.

Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 20d

The Administration acknowledged that it will stop the survey that measures food insecurity, just as tariffs push up food prices and the deep cuts to food assistance enacted in July start to take effect. Congress must intervene to save these vital data. www.wsj.com/economy/trum...

Exclusive | Trump Administration Cancels Annual Hunger Survey

The government has been measuring food insecurity since the mid-1990s but now says the report has become “overly politicized.”

www.wsj.com

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Katie Bergh @katiebergh.bsky.social · Sep 3

What does this mean for current SNAP participants? In most cases, impacted households won't see changes from this new policy until they renew their benefits.

But USDA hasn't yet provided information on how other SNAP cuts from the megabill will be implemented — so stay tuned.