What exactly is SNAP?
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the United States’ largest federal nutrition assistance program, designed to help low-income households purchase food and maintain adequate nutrition.[1] SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program, provides monthly benefits via an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card that can only be used at authorized grocery stores and farmers markets.[2]

SNAP is a federal–state partnership operated under the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The federal government determines who should be eligible, sets the benefit amounts and overall program rules, and provides the funds.  The state administers the program and distributes the benefits. SNAP Iowa is managed by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (IHHS).

To currently get SNAP benefits in Iowa, individuals must: 

• be a resident of Iowa
• be a U.S. citizen, a U.S. non-citizen national, or an eligible non-citizen
• have limited assets and an income that is below 160% of the Federal Poverty Level.  For example – in 2025, a single parent with two children is eligible if their annual household income is less than $42,640 (before taxes).
• provide all information requested by Iowa HHS 

In short: SNAP is a core part of our social safety net, ensuring the people of Johnson County have enough food to eat, which is foundational to health, productivity and community well-being.[3] 

SNAP in Johnson County
In Johnson County, Iowa, SNAP is helping thousands of households. In September 2025, 9,864 Johnson County individuals and 4,595 Johnson County households were assisted by SNAP – that’s over 6% of all the people in our county.  In total, SNAP provided the people of Johnson County with approximately $1.7 million worth of food in September.[4] 

SNAP keeps our community strong
SNAP is more than an individual benefit; it also benefits the entire community’s health, economy and stability in multiple ways:

• It supports individuals. When families don’t have to worry about where their next meal comes from, they can better focus on education, work and staying healthy.
• It helps the economy. USDA research has estimated that every dollar of SNAP benefits generates $1.54 in economic activity.[5]
• It keeps our community healthy. SNAP helps prevent hunger from spiraling into broader crises of homelessness, poor health and unrecoverable debt.

In Johnson County, food pantry leaders are appropriately sounding the alarm about what would happen if SNAP benefits are delayed or cut. Our local food bank system simply cannot absorb the additional need at the scale required.[6] SNAP provides $1.7 million in benefits each month in Johnson County alone, and those dollars also matter beyond the families who use them. 

Because almost every SNAP dollar is spent locally, our local economy also benefits from SNAP. $1.54 in economic activity is generated for each dollar in SNAP benefits, meaning that Johnson County’s $1.7 million monthly SNAP benefits amounts to more than $2.6 million in local economic activity. Johnson County is a caring community with a lot of available resources but there isn’t any way the community could raise $1.7 million every month, let alone replace the additional economic activity SNAP brings.

How are SNAP benefits being threatened?
Many households nationwide were affected by the delay in SNAP benefits in November due to the federal shutdown. Now that the government has reopened, states are moving to issue full November benefits. While that is good news, many families have already had to spend money that would have gone toward housing, utilities, or other monthly expenses to pay for food earlier in the month. Food pantries and community support organizations reported that they had to provide approximately twice as much food as usual during the shutdown.

Currently, funding for SNAP is not guaranteed. The continuing resolution that re-opened the government on November 12 only lasts until January 30, 2026. If a new appropriation is not passed by then, another government shutdown will happen. 

Beyond the problems with government shutdowns, SNAP is threatened in the long-term by budget cuts and eligibility changes. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) includes SNAP cuts of $186 billion over the next decade. OBBBA also includes a requirement that states pay a share of the program’s costs. This could cost the state of Iowa tens of millions of dollars each year which would, in turn, decrease the amount of food the program can provide. The rules about who can get SNAP benefits are also changing. For example, legal immigrants and refugees are no longer eligible for SNAP, unless they are green-card holders. This change is happening now at certification and recertification of benefits[7].

In short, what is often portrayed as “just another budget item” is in fact a critically important program for public health and economic stability. SNAP is by far the largest safety net Johnson County has for preventing hunger.

Johnson County Board of Health’s strong support for SNAP

The Johnson County Board of Health strongly endorses the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as a vital community program. It is critical to ensure that all eligible residents have timely access to these benefits in order to prevent food insecurity, support child and family health, and maintain our local economy. We urge our federal and state leaders to protect, preserve and strengthen SNAP without delay.

What You Can Do
We urge Johnson County residents to support local food organizations, as well as people you may know who are in need. In addition to local support, we urge residents to reach out to elected officials to advocate for SNAP.

Donate to local food banks / food pantries
The Johnson County Food Access Network (a local coalition of food pantries and organizations) with assistance from United Way of Johnson and Washington Counties, is taking donations for the following items to distribute across food pantries in Johnson County: peanut butter, hearty soups and stews, canned chicken and tuna, pasta, rice, and baby formula. They are also accepting monetary donations. More information can be found here: https://www.unitedwayjwc.org/food-access. 100% of monetary donations will be divided amongst pantries in Johnson County.

Advocate with your elected officials
Write to your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators, urging them to act to protect SNAP. To find your U.S. Representative: visit house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative.  Iowa’s senators are Senator Joni Ernst (contact her via https://www.ernst.senate.gov/contact/email-joni ) and Senator Chuck Grassley (contact him via https://www.grassley.senate.gov/contact/questions-and-comments ). 

Authored by: Dr. Melanie Wellington, Chair, Johnson County Board of Health
Jamie Gade, Social Determinants of Health Coordinator, Johnson County Public Health