Federal cuts to SNAP food stamp benefits could harm Kentucky’s rural communities.
A provision in a federal budget bill, also known as the Big Beautiful Bill, would restrict the amount of people eligible for the program and shift some program costs to the states.
The Cabinet for Health and Family Services says around 600,000 Kentuckians use SNAP benefits. Advocates like the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy say the bill would cut $300 billion in SNAP funding nationwide over the next decade.
Emily Foster manages the Red River Gorge Farmers Market in Powell County. She says SNAP is a benefit to rural food economies.
“When families spend SNAP benefits at the market, that money goes directly to our local farmers, who in turn spend it at local businesses, creating a ripple effect that benefits everyone,” Foster said.
Foster says 22% percent of those living in eastern Kentucky’s Congressional District Five counties participate in SNAP.
Restrictions on who is eligible for SNAP could also impact school lunch programs in low-income areas.
Leah Feagin is the food service director at Mayfield Independent School District in western Kentucky. She says they’d be in danger of losing a federal program that provides free meals in low-income school districts.
“If their percentage is at 60% versus 90%, such as my district, they're going to probably withdraw from the program, which means students who are now paying for their meals if they don't qualify for free or reduced,” Feagin said.
Feagin says many families in her district are on the edge of whether they qualify or not. It could also be more expensive for local school districts to cover the costs themselves.
