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Social Programs

These States Waived the Food Stamp Work Requirements

The geographic waivers are a massive loophole in the ABAWD work requirement.

Social Programs Policy Rapid Response BlogMay 10, 2024 By Matthew Dickerson

Able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) are supposed to work as a condition of receiving food stamp benefits.

However, states can apply geographic waivers of the ABAWD work requirement for food stamp recipients in any area that has an unemployment rate above 10 percent or “does not have a sufficient number of jobs.”

The geographic waivers are a massive loophole in the ABAWD work requirement.

States With Work Requirement Waivers For Snap Benefits

Waivers can cover all or parts of the state. In the second quarter of FY 2024, 12 states and territories waived work requirements statewide and 22 states implemented geographic waivers that covered parts of the state.

The states covered by these statewide and partial waivers had 26.5 million food stamp recipients in FY 2023, 63 percent of all food stamp recipients nationwide.

When these waivers took effect in January 2024, the U.S. unemployment rate was just 3.7 percent. In the states with a statewide or geographic waiver, the weighted average unemployment rate was 4.1 percent. This is less than the than the average U.S. unemployment rate since 2001 of 5.8 percent and is less than the CBO's projected Noncyclical Rate of Unemployment of 4.4 percent, considered the “natural unemployment” or “full employment” rate.


Statewide Work Requirement Waiver
State FY 2023 SNAP Participation Unemployment Rate in Jan 2024
California 5,217,211 5.2
Delaware 121,174 4.1
District of Columbia 138,570 5
Hawaii 151,144 3.1
Illinois 2,031,385 4.7
Michigan 1,430,174 4
Nevada 493,015 5.3
New Jersey 771,277 4.8
New Mexico 488,364 4
New York 2,886,163 4.5
Statewide waivers in Q2 of FY 2024.
Partial Work Requirement Waiver
State FY 2023 SNAP Participation Unemployment Rate in Jan 2024
Alaska 54,002 4.6
Arizona 898,016 4.2
Colorado 564,020 3.4
Connecticut 392,515 4.4
Kentucky 554,221 4.3
Louisiana 896,551 4.1
Maine 167,768 3.4
Maryland 671,132 2.3
Massachusetts 1,082,711 3
Minnesota 460,568 2.7
Montana 84,527 3.3
New Hampshire 74,617 2.6
North Dakota 45,153 1.9
Ohio 1,418,005 3.7
Oregon 732,422 4.1
Pennsylvania 1,927,478 3.4
Rhode Island 142,922 3.6
South Dakota 71,470 2.1
Vermont 70,685 2.3
Virginia 842,819 3
Washington 897,771 4.6
Wisconsin 707,321 3.2
Partial waivers in Q2 of FY 2024.

Read the EPIC Report: Strengthen Food Stamp Work Requirements to Promote Opportunity.

Author

Matthew D. Dickerson

Matthew D. Dickerson

Director of Budget Policy

Matthew D. Dickerson is Director of Budget Policy at the Economic Policy Innovation Center (EPIC). Dickerson is recognized as an expert on fiscal policy issues, including the budget, appropriations, and entitlement reform. His articles have been featured in the Wall Street Journal , the Miami Herald , National Review , the Sacramento Bee , the Washington Times , the Baltimore Sun , The Hill , the Washington Examiner , and other outlets. Prior to joining EPIC, Dickerson served as Senior Policy Advisor on the staff of the House Budget Committee, where he helped lead development of the fiscal year 2024 budget resolution. He has a dozen years of experience on Capitol Hill, including as a senior staffer with the Republican Study Committee (RSC), the caucus of conservatives in the House of Representatives. Under four different RSC chairmen, Dickerson held senior level roles including Policy Director and Senior Policy Staff. Additionally, he served as Legislative Director and other policy positions for the late Congressman C.W. Bill Young (R-FL), a former Chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee. During his tenure at The Heritage Foundation, Dickerson was Director of the Grover M. Hermann Center for the Federal Budget. In this capacity, he oversaw a team of budget analysts and economists researching diverse subjects including spending, entitlements, budget process, tax, labor, pensions, and infrastructure issues. He has also been a Policy Manager at Americans for Prosperity, where he supervised a team of fellows and analysts covering a variety of federal and state policy issues. Dickerson is a graduate of the College of William and Mary in Virginia and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Government and History.

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