Ballotpedia tracked two state bills related to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) work requirements that were enacted in 2024. One was a Florida bill that expanded work requirements for SNAP benefits by increasing the age for which requirements still apply beyond the federally set age. The other bill was in Louisiana and limited the state’s ability to seek SNAP waivers that would prevent enforcement of certain work requirements for recipients. Without a waiver, recipients are limited to no more than three months of benefits in a three-year period unless they meet the 80 hours per month (20 hours per week) work requirement.
The Florida bill, HB 1267, was signed by Governor Ron DeSantis (R) on June 13. This legislation raised the age at which individuals age out of the Able-Bodied Adult Without Dependents (ABAWD) SNAP work requirements. The ABAWD category is subject to work requirements different from those of other snap recipients. This category was expanded last year by the federal Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 to include people ages 18 to 54 (rather than 52). Florida’s new legislation further increased this category to also include people up to 59 within the state.
Louisiana passed Senate Bill 195 this year, which required that the Department of Children and Family Services not seek, apply for, accept, or renew any waiver of work requirements established by the SNAP program unless expressly required by federal law. Louisiana’s law, effective May 28, 2024, prevents the Department of Children and Family Services from seeking to suspend enforcement of ABAWD work requirements for the whole state or certain counties. Until October 1, 2024, more than half of Louisiana’s parishes had waivers suspending enforcement of SNAP ABAWD work requirements. Those waivers were submitted by the state and approved by the federal government in 2023. The waivers expired on October 1.
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