Counties in NYS may need to pay $170 million due to changes in SNAP program

Press Release, New York State Association of Counties

The following statement is from Phil Church, president of NYSAC and administrator of Oswego County.

As a result of new federal and existing state laws pertaining to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), counties across the state will be on the hook for an estimated $170 million in new annualized administrative costs that support the payment of SNAP benefits beginning in the fourth quarter of 2026, according to the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, which briefed county leaders on Tuesday.

The new federal law lowers the federal share from 50 to 25 percent, requiring counties to pick up a larger share of the program costs. These are costs that will ultimately be passed on to local taxpayers, raising costs for homeowners at a time when “affordability” is the most pressing issue facing New Yorkers.

Counties across New York play a critical role in the administration of SNAP, ensuring that vulnerable residents receive the nutrition assistance they need. However, under the new federal law when the state’s benefit payment error rate in the program exceeds federally established thresholds of over 10 percent, beginning in FFY 2028 the resulting financial penalty of up to $1.2 billion will be shifted to the state, with no determination made by the state yet on whether part of that penalty will be shifted to counties.

We urge our federal representatives to work to delay the implementation of these new SNAP rules that will impact state and local taxpayers, and importantly, the residents who rely on these benefits. We are also calling on State leaders to work together with county officials to address the federal intent of preserving program integrity so that counties and our taxpayers are not saddled with these new costs.