Food assistance income eligibility change sought

The Health and Human Services Committee heard testimony Feb. 15 on a bill that would increase the gross income eligibility limit of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to 185 percent of the federal poverty level as allowed under federal law.

Omaha Sen. Jeremy Nordquist, sponsor of LB1010, said it would not increase the net income eligibility, which currently is set at 100 percent of the federal poverty level. Instead, the bill would increase the gross income limit from 130 percent to 185 percent.

Nordquist said the change would allow families to deduct qualifying expenses – such as child care and medical expenses – prior to an income eligibility determination. Current guidelines do not encourage long-term economic sustainability, he said, because very small fluctuations in income can lead to an abrupt end to a family’s social safety net.

“Ignoring poverty doesn’t make it go away,” he said.

Single mother Kathryn Oltrogge testified in support of the bill, saying her full-time job would leave her $17 a week to live on without the benefits she receives from public assistance. While the programs are beneficial, she said, they also can be a disincentive to career advancement.

For example, Oltrogge said, she recently did not apply for a management position because the raise would have increased her salary to $1,000 a year over the income limit to qualify for SNAP.

Ericka Smrcka of Food Bank for the Heartland also supported the bill. She said one in six children in Nebraska lives in a food insecure household and that 17 counties have no local food pantry. Finding a way for more families to qualify for SNAP is essential, she said.

“We know that we cannot just meet the needs through pantries,” Smrcka said.

Scot Adams, DHHS director of the division of children and family services, opposed the bill. In written testimony provided to the committee, Adams stated that approximately 4,275 Nebraska households would become eligible for SNAP benefits under LB1010, resulting in an increased cost to DHHS of $1.8 million.

The committee took no immediate action on the bill.