SNAP enrollment in Texas sinks to its lowest level since 2009, with children making up most of the drop

Fewer Texans are getting help buying groceries than at any point in 17 years, according to state figures reported Friday by The Texas Tribune.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program had about 2.8 million Texas enrollees in September, the most recent month in Texas Health and Human Services Commission data. The last time the count was that low was August 2009. Compared with September 2025, enrollment is down 20.8%, the sharpest year-over-year decline in two decades, and it fell for every age group.

Children have absorbed most of the loss. They remain the largest group of recipients, at 1.4 million, but account for more than half of the people who have dropped off since last September. The number of children younger than 5 on SNAP is at its lowest in more than 20 years.

What changed

Experts cited by the Tribune point to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which Congress passed last year. Before it, work requirements applied to able-bodied adults under 54 without children; the law extended them to people as old as 64 and to parents whose children are younger than 13. It also made refugees and many lawfully present immigrants ineligible.

Applications are also moving more slowly. HHSC decided 64% of SNAP applications within 30 days in September, compared with 91% a year before. Federal rules require 95%, and a state that falls short can lose federal funding.

The same law begins sharing benefit costs with states. Texas' error rate is close to 9%, and unless it drops under 6%, the state could owe as much as $2 billion more in the 2028-29 budget, the Tribune reported. HHSC Executive Commissioner Stephanie Muth told lawmakers in her budget request that cutting that rate is her top priority.

Competing views

Celia Cole, who leads the food bank network Feeding Texas, said the drop does not reflect people finding work or no longer needing help, and that food banks are seeing record need. Diana Forester, health policy director at Texans Care for Children, urged lawmakers to fix the delays so eligible families are not left waiting.

An HHSC spokesperson said the new federal mandates require a careful review of every case and that the agency will keep serving eligible families as fast as it can. The agency did not give a reason for the enrollment decline, the Tribune said.

For reference, a family of four can qualify with a monthly income of $4,421 or less. Families that receive SNAP also qualify their children for free school meals automatically, according to the report.

Sources

The Texas Tribune