Louisiana SNAP Enrollment Falls 21% After Federal Law Changes
SNAP enrollment in Louisiana dropped about 170,000 people, or 21%, since the One Big Beautiful Bill Act took effect last year, with national enrollment down an estimated 13% as of this June, according to Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analysis of federal data. The law shifted more SNAP administrative costs to states, raising the state share from 50% to 75% starting October 1, and expanded work requirements while tightening eligibility verification. Louisiana data shows 75% of those who lost coverage from July 2025 to June 2026 did so for procedural reasons, such as missed paperwork deadlines, rather than ineligibility. Advocates and policy analysts are pushing Congress to delay the cost-shift provisions through the pending Farm Bill, warning that rising payment error rate penalties are pressuring states to impose more frequent documentation requirements, inadvertently denying benefits to eligible families.