Anti-hunger groups urge Gov. Kim Reynolds to veto bill with new public assistance requirements

A coalition of anti-hunger groups are urging Gov. Kim Reynolds to veto a bill that would subject Iowans to a new asset test to receive food benefits.

Matt Unger, CEO of the Des Moines Area Religious Council, said his network of food pantries is already providing Iowans with record assistance. He believes Senate File 494 will make it more difficult for Iowans to receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.

"Whether their families are kicked off the program or their families simply never apply because it’s too difficult and cumbersome, signing this bill means children who need it and deserve it will not have the food they need," Unger said at a news conference Tuesday in the Iowa Capitol rotunda.

What's in the SNAP bill?

Republican House lawmakers passed the bill last week, sending it to Reynolds' desk for her signature. It would bar Iowa households from receiving SNAP benefits if they have more than $15,000 in liquid assets, excluding the value of a home, the household's first car and up to $10,000 of the value of a second household car.

More: Iowa lawmakers pass new asset test for SNAP benefits that could kick off thousands

SNAP benefits are currently available, without an asset test, to those making up to 160% of the federal poverty level, which is $48,000 for a family of four.

The bill would also require regular eligibility checks for several public assistance programs, including SNAP and Medicaid, to ensure recipients qualify. And Medicaid recipients would have to cooperate with child support services as a condition of receiving benefits.

Recipients worry they will lose benefits

Ken Peterson is a senior citizen and U.S. Navy veteran who receives Social Security disability benefits and $23 per month in SNAP. He said the process to certify he is eligible for SNAP benefits is already difficult, even without the new requirements in the bill.

"If this bill does pass, I worry I’ll lose my SNAP benefits altogether," he said. "If this bill does pass, it will make it much harder for me to reapply for benefits."

Participants in Tuesday's news conference included representatives from the Iowa Hunger Coalition, the Des Moines Area Religious Council, Save the Children Action Network, Common Good Iowa, the Iowa Farmers Union, Iowa ACEs 360 and Valley United Methodist Church.

How many Iowans could lose benefits?

The nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency estimates that about 1% of those receiving public assistance benefits will have them canceled "due to discrepancies" beginning in fiscal year 2026.

That means 2,800 SNAP recipients and 8,000 Medicaid recipients would lose benefits, as would 600 people on the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and 100 on the Family Investment Program.

Republicans dispute those estimates. They say no one will lose benefits other than people who are not eligible to receive them.

"If you’re eligible for the benefit, you will receive the benefit," Rep. Joel Fry, R-Osceola, the bill's floor manager, said during House debate last week. "It protects the program for those who need it most, and I would suggest to you that we are creating a safety net that is sustainable for the long term."

How much money will the bill save?

By fiscal year 2027, the Legislative Services Agency estimates the bill will result in $42.2 million less in spending, including $8.2 million in reduced state spending.

Mary Nelle Trefz, advocacy network director at Iowa ACEs 360, which advocates on behalf of children with adverse childhood experiences, said the vast bulk of those projected savings come from disenrolling Iowans from Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program.

"When someone loses their health insurance and becomes uninsured, that doesn’t mean that they lose their health care needs," she said. "They will still need to access health care services, but they might delay care, waiting for their conditions to become more deadly and costlier to treat. And that's a price that all of us will pay."

Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Groups plead with Kim Reynolds to veto public assistance restrictions