As the budget reconciliation bill moves through the Senate, West Virginia still faces cuts to a key food support program. The House budget reconciliation proposal cut $300 billion , about 30% from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP. While senators have reduced that cut by nearly one-third, it's anticipated millions of Americans would still lose access.

More than 2,200 West Virginia retailers accept SNAP.

Caitlin Cook, director of advocacy and public policy with the Mountaineer Food Bank, said cutting this program will tend to shrink local economies.

"SNAP benefits are a lifeline in a lot of rural grocery stores," she explained. "For every SNAP dollar, there's a $1.50 economic impact. So, without a doubt, SNAP cuts are going to hit our state very hard because of the high level of food insecurity."

More than 275,000 West Virginians use SNAP to help keep food on the table, which includes 94,000 kids and more than 50,000 seniors.

Reports this week indicate the Senate parliamentarian will approve a provision shifting some costs to the states. For states with a SNAP error rate above 6%, that cost could run as high as 15%. The SNAP error rate measures how accurately states determine eligibility and benefits, including overpayments and underpayments. The error rate is not a measure of fraud. Errors are typically unintentional, and many are clerical errors from state agencies. Only one state has never had an error rate above 6% since recording began in 2003. The 2023 error rate in West Virginia was nearly 11%, and Cook said introducing this variance into the system will have consequences.

"If this goes through, a person that lives across the border in Ohio may have greater access to food assistance by virtue of them living in Ohio," Cook explained. "It is dependent on what state you live in, as to how successful their SNAP program is run."

Currently errors are corrected, with overpayments being paid back to states, and underpayments reimbursed to households. States with a high error rate for two consecutive years are charged a penalty under current policy.

Both Senate and House versions of the bill will also reduce the federal share of administrative costs by half, pushing the state and county share of admin costs to 75%. The combined cost shift of error rate penalty and admin expense is estimated to be $84 million a year for West Virginia, with an estimated loss of 32 million meals. Both versions of the bill have expanded work requirements and reduced exemptions, with the Senate version adding work requirements for older adults 55 to 64 and parents with children over age 9.

Vince Hall, chief government relations officer with Feeding America, sees work requirements as a misguided priority.

"The vast majority of people who are able to work are working," he said. "The bad news is that their wages, even with sometimes two full-time jobs, are so insufficient that despite how hard they are working, they are still unable to afford the basics of rent, food and health care."

Last year SNAP injected more than $550 million into the state's economy.


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Groups working to end hunger in Nebraska are reaching out to all parts of the state to train food insecure people to advocate for others facing similar issues.

The advocacy group Nebraska Appleseed's Food Access Community Advocates Cohort educates people over nine months how to build advocacy, community organizing and storytelling skills, so they are better equipped to understand policies affecting the state's most food insecure people.

Megan Hamann, senior community organizer of food and nutrition access for Nebraska Appleseed, said having experienced hunger puts them in a better position to understand and talk about policy issues affecting hungry people in Nebraska.

"They have this lived experience that is really useful, I think, when it comes to making sure that our decision-makers know the impact of the policies they are considering," Hamann explained.

Nebraska Appleseed will start taking applications for new program participants Friday.

Hamann pointed out the number of food insecure people in Nebraska is greater now than it was during the pandemic, when demand at food banks was already high.

"I think with the passage of the recent federal budget reconciliation bill, we are looking forward to a period of time where that need is going to reach new extremes," Hamann projected.

This will be the fourth year of the cohort program. Many past participants have taken leadership roles in their communities and are now leading local efforts to educate others about the best ways to address food insecurity.


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It has been about three weeks since the Rowena Fire in Oregon's Columbia Gorge was put out, and the local food bank remains vital to recovery efforts.

The fire burned 3,600 acres in Wasco County, destroying 56 homes and 100 other structures.

Breen Goodwin, executive director of the Columbia Gorge Food Bank, said they are always prepared to assist during disasters with ready-to-eat emergency food boxes and water. She added many displaced families are living with relatives, in hotels, or camping and remain uncertain about their next steps.

"It is difficult in a community of our size to absorb housing needs for that many families who have lost homes," Goodwin acknowledged. "That next step of the recovery process of truly: 'How are those families being supported with more long term recovery efforts?'"

Breen pointed out the food bank has been serving as a distribution site to hand out supplies from Adventist Health of the Columbia Gorge and other organizations who donated nonfood items, including air purifiers, generators, hygiene supplies and stuffed animals for kids.

One of the biggest challenges, Breen noted, is keeping a supply of drinking water flowing once people start to return home.

"We're able to drop full pallets of water directly into the impacted communities because most of the time the drinking water is no longer safe until enough testing has been done," Breen explained.

The Columbia Gorge Food Bank is one of 21 regional food banks in the Oregon Food Bank Network. Breen emphasized the number of people visiting the food bank rose to about 6,500 per month during the pandemic and has remained at that level. People can visit OregonFoodFinder.org to find pantry locations in their area.

Indiana families are navigating the summer without SUN Bucks, a federal grocery benefit which delivered $120 per child last summer.

Gov. Mike Braun's administration chose not to participate in 2025, citing prior planning gaps.

Mark Lynch, director of advocacy for the Indy Hunger Network, said the funding blackout hit the state hard.

"We really are feeling and seeing the impacts of not having the SUN Bucks program this year," Lynch emphasized. "That $120 per summer for those students that they had last year have created some longer lines at our food pantries."

State leaders said administrative hurdles kept Indiana out of the program. Supporters argued skipping SUN Bucks puts pressure on food banks and leaves low-income families with fewer options.

Lynch noted to help bridge the gap, Indiana expanded its summer meal sites to include prepackaged meals, which do not require daily pickups.

"But there's school starting soon and they're giving their workers some time off for the summer, so that might be ending in the next week or two," Lynch explained. "That's just an example and that happens around the state in rural, suburban, and in city communities."

The Indy Hunger Network and other partners continue to support Hoosiers through tools like the Community Compass app, which shows nearby meal sites and grocery assistance programs.


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