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County social services warns HR 1 changes could cut SNAP benefits and shift costs to counties
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Summary
Anson County social services director presented the likely local impacts of House Resolution 1 on SNAP and Medicaid: reduced benefit allotments over time, expanded work requirements, limits on noncitizen eligibility, decreased federal administrative match (50% to 25% from Oct. 1) and an estimated additional county cost in FY27 of roughly $132,000.
Lula Jackson, Anson County’s social services director, told commissioners that state and federal policy changes described in House Resolution 1 (HR 1) will reshape SNAP (food-stamp) and Medicaid administration, shift fiscal risk to counties and increase administrative burdens.
Jackson said HR 1 would cap reviews of the thrifty food plan (which sets SNAP allotments), expand the population subject to work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents, change standard utility allowances and limit certain noncitizen eligibility categories. She told the board that changes to the federal-state administrative match for Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) would reduce the federal reimbursement rate for county administrative costs from 50% to 25% effective Oct. 1 and could increase the county’s share of benefit costs based on payment-error-rate calculations. Using county caseloads and benefit totals reported in her presentation, Jackson said Anson County’s additional cost in fiscal year 2027 could be roughly $132,000 and about $176,308 in fiscal year 2028 under reduced reimbursement assumptions.
Jackson warned of operational effects: increased case complexity, greater verification tasks, higher training needs, more administrative churn and a potential rise in payment-error-rate scrutiny. She recommended the county consider short-term investments in staffing and training to reduce error rates, noting that an elevated error rate could produce significant monthly costs tied to the portion of benefit allotments the county would be required to cover.
Commissioners asked for clarification about how payment-error rates are calculated; Jackson explained they are based on reviewed cases and the number found to be inaccurately authorized. She reported Anson County’s most recent payment-error rate as 6.71% and noted state efforts (NCFAST improvements) to reduce common data-entry errors. Jackson and her staff urged the board to plan proactively for increased workload and budget impacts and to monitor state developments and budget decisions closely.
Board discussion emphasized the need for training, interagency coordination and exploring budget strategies (for example, timing purchases within the state's higher reimbursement window for the first quarter). Jackson said some implementation steps take effect in 2026–2027 and that certain provisions would phase in later; the board asked staff for follow-up analyses to inform budget planning.
