The Iowa House will hold a public hearing on SF494 SNAP benefits at 9:30 a.m. April 4 in room 103 at the Iowa Capitol. More than 50 people have signed up to speak so far. Sign up here.
Here is a highlight of some of the proposed changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP):
- To determine eligibility for benefits, an asset test would be conducted and a family with more than $15,000 in assets would be ineligible.
- The department would purchase new computer systems by 2025, estimated to cost $5.5 million, according to the Legislative Services Agency.
- Fraud suspects will be referred to the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals.
- An estimated 2,800 SNAP recipients, 8,000 Medicaid recipients and 700 other recipients could lose benefits under this plan, according to the nonpartisan agency.
- The average number of Iowans receiving SNAP benefits in fiscal year 2022 was 287,000, according to the agency’s fiscal note.
