About 80,000 Kentuckians have lost access to food aid under federal rule changes

Some 80,000 Kentuckians have lost access to the food benefits known as SNAP because of federal changes to the program, Gov. Andy Beshear said in a letter sent to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and Kentucky’s congressional delegation on Wednesday.

Beshear said that number includes 24,655 children and 6,572 seniors. He asked that federal officials “take action to ensure our most vulnerable citizens, including children and the elderly, do not go hungry for reasons beyond their control.” 

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program currently provides benefits to 286,921 Kentucky households, according to state data. According to Beshear, just shy of 547,000 individuals are getting assistance — down from 627,164 in October 2025. 

Households in Kentucky receiving SNAP get an average of $346 each month, according to state data. 

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a sweeping budget bill passed by Congress in 2025, made several changes to the program that Beshear and others have said would cause greater food insecurity. 

Last November, veterans, the homeless, recent foster care youth and adults ages 54-64 were no longer exempt from work requirements to receive food benefits for themselves and their families through SNAP.

“We should be fighting hunger, not causing it; yet the President’s cruel and unnecessary changes to SNAP are causing more than 80,000 Kentuckians – and millions of Americans across our country – to face hunger,” Beshear said in a statement 

“School meals and summer programs are what so many children depend on for food,” Beshear said. “Because of the President’s actions, now even those dependable sources of food will be taken from our most vulnerable kids. It’s wrong, and action needs to be taken.”

This story may be updated.