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Alliance Alert: As ���������� begins implementing new federal work requirements for SNAP, advocates and local agencies are raising serious concerns about confusion, administrative strain, and the risk that tens of thousands of ����������ers could lose access to food assistance.

These changes, which now require certain individuals to document up to 80 hours per month of work, school, or volunteer activity, are already proving difficult to implement. Counties across the state are struggling to keep up with new administrative demands, while many recipients remain unaware of the requirements or are receiving notices in error. The result is a system that is increasingly complex, difficult to navigate, and at risk of leaving people without the support they need.

At the Alliance for Rights and Recovery, we believe that every effort must be made to ensure that as many people as possible are able to maintain access to food assistance if needed. SNAP is a critical lifeline for individuals and families, including people experiencing homelessness, veterans, and young people aging out of foster care. Losing access to these benefits will only deepen food insecurity and worsen health and economic outcomes.

To mitigate harm, the state must take a more active role in supporting counties and communities during this transition. This includes:

• Expanding outreach and public education efforts to ensure people understand the new requirements and available exemptions
• Partnering with community-based organizations to help get the word out and assist individuals in navigating the system
• Investing in employment and volunteer opportunities that are accessible for people to meet requirements
• Ensuring clear, accessible communication so that individuals fully understand what is required to maintain their benefits

Without these supports, too many people will fall through administrative cracks, not because they are unwilling to meet requirements, but because the system is too difficult to navigate.

We are also closely watching how the state rolls out these SNAP work requirements, as they may provide a preview of how future Medicaid work requirements will be implemented later this year. It is critical that lessons are learned now to avoid even greater disruptions to access to healthcare coverage down the line.

The Alliance for Rights and Recovery remains committed to ensuring that people who need food assistance are able to access it. We will continue to monitor the state’s implementation efforts, share updates, and provide opportunities for advocacy to protect and strengthen these essential supports.

At a time of rising costs and increasing need, we must do everything we can to ensure that no one is left without access to basic necessities like food.

Advocates Say ‘Chaos’ Is Mounting as Counties Implement New SNAP Rules
By Jie Jenny Zou | ���������� Focus | April 27, 2026

���������� counties are wrestling with strict new federal requirements for food assistance that kicked in last month and will impact hundreds of thousands of ����������ers for the first time.

On March 1, expanded work rules went into effect for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program as part of President Donald Trump’s “.” Until then, ���������� was among several states that had waivers allowing them to .

Under the new guidelines, SNAP recipients considered “able-bodied adults without dependents” must document that they spent up to 80 hours every month working, in school, or volunteering. ����������ers who fail to meet the monthly requirement three times will have their food benefits terminated unless they apply for exemptions that prove they are unfit to work. The new rules also apply to the homeless, veterans, and youth aging out of foster care.

Preparing for the changes hasn’t been easy. In October, counties were  of the work rules several months earlier than expected after the Trump administration tried, but ultimately , to fast-track the new mandate.

Since then, social service agencies have been scrambling to train their staff on new screening and exemption guidelines, coordinate work and volunteer opportunities, identify and connect with impacted SNAP recipients, and update their tech systems to closely monitor those recipients and track their work hours. And the agencies are not sure how impacted ����������ers will respond, making it difficult to gauge how many households will continue to receive benefits in the months to come.

Experts predict the work rules could result in  ����������ers losing their SNAP benefits starting in June — likely worsening food insecurity, which has remained at  statewide since the pandemic.

Meanwhile, advocates are urging agencies to do more to ensure ����������ers don’t fall through administrative cracks. Diana Ramos, an activist with Urban Justice Center’s Safety Net Project and a SNAP recipient from the Bronx, called the ongoing rollout of the new rules in ���������� City a “chaos bin.”

Ramos noted that several ����������ers who should be exempt from the rules, such as those receiving disability benefits or caregivers for dependents with special needs, have gotten compliance notices in error. Her organization is calling on the city’s Human Resources Administration, which oversees SNAP across the five boroughs, to make their notices easier to follow and set up a system for recipients to appeal erroneous “non-compliance” notices.

Earlier this month, several ����������ers received “first strike” notices for failing to meet the rules for the month of March, but Ramos noted that many were unable to connect with HRA staff in a timely manner and some were directed to an automated phone number that said their cases had been closed.

HRA Administrator Scott French said his agency has opted to send impacted SNAP recipients notices for every month they are not in compliance with the rule. Such notices are not mandated by the federal policy, but French said the agency is issuing them to ensure ����������ers get ample opportunity to comply.

Raising awareness remains a logistical hurdle. In late February, French told Focus that only a small share of the 119,000 impacted SNAP recipients in ���������� City had responded to the agency’s proactive outreach efforts. French said that he expects engagement to improve as the agency ramps up its warnings.

Increasing awareness has also been a top priority for Erie County, where 7,500 residents are subject to the new rules. In an email, Peter Anderson, spokesperson for the Erie County executive, said the county has started sending mass text messages to all impacted SNAP recipients on top of regular mail notices.

Still, he said, attendance for orientations the county held to notify SNAP recipients of the changes were “very low,” wrote Anderson. Only about 1,400 residents showed up to the events, which were conducted through February.

In Monroe County, home to Rochester, Denise Read, deputy commissioner for human services, said her agency is struggling to balance the new requirements alongside daily operations. “We don’t have enough staff to manage the regular workload,” she said. “All of these new mandates are a significant strain.”

She worries that despite her agency’s best efforts to connect with impacted SNAP recipients, some will inevitably lose their benefits. “We anticipate June will come and people will try to access their SNAP and realize their cases have been closed,” she said.

The policy shift is the latest in a series of abrupt changes testing the limits of  social service agencies responsible for operating SNAP across the state. Even more changes could be on the way. The Trump administration is trying to restrict SNAP eligibility for thousands of legally present immigrants, including human trafficking victims — a provision currently being . Last month, federal officials announced a task force to tackle what they , pledging to tighten SNAP eligibility even further. (Despite the administration’s claims, documented instances of SNAP fraud by recipients have.)

And later this year, counties will be on the hook for covering a much larger share of the administrative costs for SNAP, which have historically been split evenly between the federal government and states. The ���������� Association of Counties has  about the ability of local governments to cover these costs, which could exceed millions annually in some counties.

To minimize fallout from the new work rules, Empire Justice Center recommends counties expand their outreach efforts by partnering with community groups to inform the public about exemptions and make notices as accessible as possible, using bold fonts and clear, easy-to-understand language. But the center notes that what counties are able to do will be limited by resources, and the state is unable to force counties to do more than what’s required under the federal law. The work rules themselves also place the bulk of the administrative burden on SNAP recipients to prove they are meeting their monthly requirement.

“I’m not sure how many people realize what’s going on, it’s very complex and new,” said Elizabeth Woods, an attorney at Empire Justice Center. “People get notices all the time and they may not realize what’s going on.”

Several counties have already been emphasizing exemptions. Staff at Clinton County’s Department of Social Services are conducting lengthier screenings of SNAP recipients to identify potential barriers to consistent employment that may qualify them for exemptions, said Deputy Commissioner Lindsay Mehrman. It’s estimated that 1,500 residents in the rural northeastern county are subject to the new rules.

When screening SNAP clients who are homeless, for instance, her staff asks if they have access to transportation or laundry services to assess whether they could sustain employment. “We really want to make sure if we’re sending these folks to work that they’re truly able-bodied and work-ready,” Mehrman said.

The agency has also hired an additional employee whose primary duty is tracking the 1,500 residents each month. SNAP recipients who are not eligible for an exemption will be directed to OneWorkSource Center, the county’s existing hub for employment and training services.

Monroe County estimates that after exemptions, roughly 5,000 SNAP recipients will be subject to the new rules. To get the word out, the agency has held virtual orientations for SNAP recipients and trained over 500 members from local community organizations to help with outreach.

Some of those groups are also helping the agency host in-person clinics aimed at connecting with harder-to-reach populations. Past clinics have focused on SNAP recipients who are veterans or who are struggling with substance abuse or homelessness. They featured on-site medical providers that conducted screenings and filled out exemption forms for those eligible.

“We’re really trying to saturate the community,” Read said, but noted that the added workload has been difficult to manage. The agency is in the process of hiring at least five temp workers for a team created specifically to address the new work rules.

Outreach may soon become even more difficult. Later this year, federal funding for ���������� groups that provide SNAP outreach will be , threatening to topple the state’s network of community-based navigators that help residents enroll and stay enrolled in SNAP.

Krista Hesdorfer, director of public affairs at Hunger Solutions ����������, is urging the state to increase its support for these programs in ongoing state budget negotiations to ensure ����������ers get access to the help they need at this critical time. “Local can help families understand the new work rules and submit documentation to maintain their benefits,” she said. “This statewide network of SNAP policy experts provides valuable support to families and social services agencies as the new rules roll out.”

As part of HRA’s efforts to improve compliance, the agency has partnered with over 70 community groups, including the Food Bank For NYC to offer volunteer opportunities that could help impacted SNAP recipients meet their monthly hours. The food bank is also part of the SNAP navigator network.

Zac Hall, senior vice president of programs at Food Bank For NYC, said the organization already has a robust volunteer program in place as the city’s largest emergency food distribution network. “We’re in a better position than many other organizations. We already track and document hours for volunteers already.”

Hall noted that many smaller organizations across the state may not have resources and staff available to coordinate, oversee, and track volunteers. Rural areas that lack public transit may also make volunteering unfeasible for SNAP clients who are unable to drive.

“We do a lot of interpretation,” Hall said of SNAP navigators’ efforts. “HRA’s focus is really on making sure they are legally communicating the correct information. Sometimes that’s not how people digest important news.”