During a recent Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) hearing, Republican lawmakers pressed state officials over major failures in the administration of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
At the November 18th hearing, representatives from the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) were questioned about persistent errors within the food assistance program. Recent reports show Illinois now has one of the highest SNAP error rates in the nation.
Since 2017, the state’s error rate has nearly doubled, reaching 11.56 percent in 2024. Under federal law, states with error rates above 10 percent must repay 15 percent of the total value of their SNAP benefits, potentially costing Illinois millions of dollars if the problem continues.
Senate Republicans emphasized that taxpayers deserve transparency and accountability, saying the state-administered program provides critical support to families and that continued mismanagement jeopardizes both recipients and taxpayer dollars.
SNAP provides food assistance to low-income households to help supplement their grocery budgets.
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