One of many areas hit hard by funding cuts in the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law on July 4 is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistant Program (SNAP). SNAP, previously called the Food Stamp Program, provides food benefits to low-income individuals and families to supplement their grocery budget so they can afford adequate nutrition.

As of April 2025, 366,018 people were receiving SNAP benefits in Connecticut. An estimated 34,000 people could lose access to benefits under the new law.

Members of UConn’s College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR) have worked for years with individuals and community institutions involved in SNAP.

Three experts in this space: Caitlin Caspi, associate professor of allied health sciences and associate director of InCHIP; Valerie Duffy, professor and director of the graduate program in allied health sciences; and Michael Puglisi, associate extension professor of nutritional sciences, address some of the key question about what these changes mean for Connecticut residents.

How does SNAP help support people’s health?

MP: In the United States, there are people who are truly in hunger and lack food. But what we tend to find, especially in our area, is that unhealthy or less healthy foods are much cheaper. With that, when people are food insecure, they tend to be at a greater risk for chronic disease. In Connecticut, people in households earning less than $35,000 per year have nearly triple the rates of heart disease and diabetes as people in households earning $75,000 or more. Of course, many factors contribute, but food insecurity and lack of access to healthy foods are a major factor that would be worsened with cuts to SNAP.

VD: SNAP benefits initially were a percentage of an emergency food plan; what someone would purchase just to provide food for the day and not necessarily nutritious food. In 2021, USDA revised the benefit calculation to be a percentage of a healthy food plan, based on the U.S. policy of healthy eating (called the Dietary Guidelines shown as MyPlate). This revision aligned SNAP with the concept of food security, which is giving people enough food. It’s also important to consider nutrition security, because good nutrition and a good diet support physical health, as well as emotional health and wellbeing. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act cuts SNAP benefits per person or per family so that total benefit will not align with healthy eating.

How does SNAP benefit Connecticut’s economy?

MP: If you don’t have enough food to get through the day, how are you supposed to be a productive member of society? It has been estimated by cost-benefit analysis research that for every $1 spent on SNAP, between health care savings and economic activity, anywhere from $10 to $20 is estimated to be returned on the investment. There’s a lot of effects people don’t think about when it comes to those SNAP cuts.

VD: Benefits are also connected with programs for farmers and grocery stores, both larger grocery stores and local grocery stores as well. SNAP supports the entire economy.

What are some of the biggest changes to SNAP funding in the “Big Beautiful Bill”?

CC: What’s happening immediately is some changes to SNAP eligibility. That’s going to drive more people to rely on emergency food assistance. Then, in the long term, there are changes that are going to have a serious impact in Connecticut. Starting in fiscal year 2027, the administrative costs for states to implement SNAP are going to increase from 50% to 75%. There will also be more changes to SNAP eligibility. Then, in the following year, Connecticut is also going to be responsible for paying for a portion of the program based on its error rate. Across the U.S., states will have to find a way to cover these costs that were previously covered by federal government. They are going to need to do something – and that something could make it more difficult to get benefits, or cut back on SNAP outreach.

How are these cuts impacting resources like food banks?

CC: There has already been a direct cut to the supply of food in the charitable food system. The Local Food Purchasing Assistance (LFPA) Program was abruptly cut in March. And that program supported the purchase of fresh, local foods. The administration also abruptly halted $500 million in funds for The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). In combination with cuts to the SNAP program, in both the short term and the long term, it’s going to exacerbate the problem of food insecurity and make it more difficult for people to access healthy food. When you talk to food banks, what you hear clearly is that SNAP cuts will be a tsunami that will hit an already stretched system.

What is SNAP-Ed and what’s its status now?

VD: This program reached thousands of people in Connecticut each year to make the most of SNAP benefits and other resources to improve their health. Educators at UConn have been providing educational resources through SNAP-Ed for decades. This program is intended to empower people learn about nutrition so they can buy the most nutritious options available with their benefits. That has been completely wiped out.

CC: When you put all of these things together, you see this sort of multi-level potential impact. We’re talking about impact on the food supply, impact on food affordability, and impact on people’s ability to learn about nutrition. So, there’s this layered big picture in these cuts.

How will this impact work at UConn?

CC: During the pandemic we were doing research on what happens when you expand SNAP. Unfortunately, what we’re going to be looking at now are the effects of rolling back benefits. While, as researchers, we’re positioned to be able to capture these changes, it’s not what we hope to be doing, because what we found after conducting our pandemic-era research was the importance of these benefits. So, we do expect that rolling back these benefits is going to result in poorer outcomes for people nutritionally, and in terms of their overall health and financial wellbeing.

What can the state and residents do now to support nutrition access?

VD: Support non-government sources of food. And, at the end of the day, you have to advocate for the basic right of people that live in this nation and in Connecticut to continue to be able to access food.

MP: This really isn’t a political discussion. Making sure people are healthy and have access to food – that’s something everybody should be in support of. There could certainly be adjustments to the program, but it will be more efficient and effective to do that in the right way, with the contribution of experts in the field who are knowledgeable about getting communities the nutrition they need.

This work relates to CAHNR’s Strategic Vision area focused on Enhancing Health and Well-Being Locally, Nationally, and Globally.

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