I was listening to WBEZ Chicago today and heard about changes to SNAP benefits [View all]

https://www.wbez.org/health-medicine/2026/04/30/snap-food-assistance-cutoffs-begin-in-illinois-on-may-1-what-you-need-to-know

SNAP food assistance cutoffs begin Friday in Illinois — what you need to know
About 120,000 people statewide are expected to lose SNAP food support starting in May because of President Donald Trump’s expanded work and volunteer rules.

By Elvia Malagón Apr 30, 2026

Thousands of people in Illinois are expected to begin losing federal food assistance beginning May 1 as part of an overhaul of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

In February, new and expanded work requirements for SNAP participants went into effect as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax bill that passed last summer. The changes call for “able-bodied” people to work or volunteer 80 hours a month — about four hours a day — to stay in the program.

This is the first year any work requirement has been in effect since at least March 2020 because the state previously had a waiver. Even before 2020, Illinois had a waiver for certain counties.

As of Tuesday, the Illinois Department of Human Services, the state agency that administers the program, estimated that 120,000 individuals were at risk of losing their benefits starting Friday and rolling out over the next several months. That’s down about 280,000 from what the state originally anticipated would be pushed out of the program as people received exemptions from the work rules.

Why will people lose benefits in May?

If a person is subject to work or volunteer rules and doesn’t meet them, they lose benefits after three months. The new rules went into effect in Illinois on Feb. 1. Overall, if you aren’t meeting the work rules, you can only get benefits for three months in a three-year period, according to IDHS.

Congress expanded the work rules to include 55- to 64-year-olds, veterans and parents whose youngest child is 14 years or older, down from 18 and older previously.