Penalties loom for Washington if state doesn’t improve food stamp error rates
The state would owe about 5% of benefits, or more than $90 million, under a federal law aimed at cutting SNAP payment errors.
- Washington's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program error rate reached 6.98% in the 2025 federal fiscal year, falling short of targets required to avoid penalties under President Donald Trump's tax cut and spending law approved last year.
- Under the federal law, states must cover between 5% and 15% of food stamp benefits depending on error rates; Washington currently faces potential costs exceeding $90 million if rates remain between 6% and 8%.
- The Department of Social and Health Services allocated over $45 million and funded a half-dozen quality control staffers in this year's supplemental budget to drive the error rate below 6%.
- Claire Lane, director of the Seattle-based Anti-Hunger and Nutrition Coalition, warned that the law creates paperwork barriers potentially leading to thousands fewer residents receiving benefits as advocates argue these penalties threaten essential programs.
- While Democrats in Congress have pushed to delay or reverse these penalties through the federal farm bill, Republicans have refused to act; Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins stated nationwide data proves 'state accountability is severely lacking.
24 Articles
24 Articles
The Columbian
Penalties loom for Washington if state doesn’t improve food stamp error rates
Washington’s food stamp overpayments and underpayments ticked up this year, and the state could face tens of millions of dollars in added costs if accuracy doesn’t improve.
Penalties loom for Washington if state doesn’t improve food stamp error rates - The Mexico Ledger
(Stock photo by hapabapa/Getty Images)Washington’s food stamp overpayments and underpayments ticked up this year, and the state could face tens of millions of dollars in added costs if accuracy doesn’t improve. The state’s error rate was 6.98% in the 2025 federal fiscal year, with most mistakes coming from overpayments to recipients under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, according to new federal data. That’s well b…
Penalties loom for Washington if state doesn’t improve food stamp error rates - Stateline Publications
(Stock photo by hapabapa/Getty Images)Washington’s food stamp overpayments and underpayments ticked up this year, and the state could face tens of millions of dollars in added costs if accuracy doesn’t improve. The state’s error rate was 6.98% in the 2025 federal fiscal year, with most mistakes coming from overpayments to recipients under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, according to new federal data. That’s well b…
Penalties loom for Washington if state doesn’t improve food stamp error rates - Hillsboro Sentry Enterprise
(Stock photo by hapabapa/Getty Images)Washington’s food stamp overpayments and underpayments ticked up this year, and the state could face tens of millions of dollars in added costs if accuracy doesn’t improve. The state’s error rate was 6.98% in the 2025 federal fiscal year, with most mistakes coming from overpayments to recipients under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, according to new federal data. That’s well b…
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 94% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
