Wisconsin households on FoodShare, the state’s name for SNAP, can no longer get a three-year approval if a member is 60 to 64 and not disabled. The change took effect August 8, 2026, and households already holding a three-year approval now face extra paperwork: six-month report forms and an interview when they renew.
The rule comes from Operations Memo 26-28, issued July 31, 2026 by the Division of Medicaid Services at the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, with Jonelle Brom of its Bureau of Eligibility Operations and Training and Autumn Arnold of its Bureau of Eligibility and Enrollment Policy named as the authors. The memo says food units with a member aged 60 to 64 who does not have a disability will no longer qualify for a 36-month FoodShare certification period.
What a household with such a member has to do depends on where it stands. Under the memo, a household that already holds a 36-month period keeps it, but it must complete six-month report forms until its next renewal and must complete an interview at renewal. The state says it will send each of these households a letter with the new requirement and the due date of the first form, so that letter is the deadline that counts.
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Why the age 60 to 64 group changed
The trigger is federal. The memo says the 2025 law known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, H.R. 1, raised the upper age limit for SNAP’s work requirements for able-bodied adults without dependents from age 54 to age 64. Under that older rule, adults in that age range face a time limit on benefits unless they work or qualify for an exemption.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service then directed states to stop issuing 36-month periods to households with members subject to the work requirement. Wisconsin’s memo says food units with members under 65 who are subject to the requirement cannot be certified for 36 months.
Who is affected, and when
The memo applies to applications and renewals received or pending on or after August 8, 2026. A household with a member aged 60 to 64 who is not disabled can therefore no longer be given the longer period when it applies or renews. The state’s rule is about the certification length. Whether a person is eligible is a separate question decided by the usual FoodShare tests.
Members with a disability are outside the group, and so is anyone 65 or older. The memo says members without a disability can qualify for a 36-month certification period starting in the month they turn 65.
What the renewal interview involves
At the interview, the memo says, staff must screen the household for all exemptions to the FoodShare basic work rules and work requirements. The memo does not list those exemptions, and it does not say what the six-month report form asks beyond that it must be completed.
The first due date printed in the state’s letter is the one that sets the clock for the six-month report forms. The memo lists the DHS CARES Problem Resolution Team among its contacts for questions about the policy.
What stays unsettled for households turning 60
The memo does not say how many Wisconsin households are affected. A household with a member turning 60 after August 8 will land in the group at its next renewal, and the first report date will arrive with its letter.
For a member who turns 65, the memo ends the extra steps by opening the door to a 36-month period again, beginning in the month of the birthday.
Is a FoodShare household in Wisconsin ready for its first six-month report?
A household with a member aged 60 to 64 now has two things to keep straight: the six-month report forms due before its renewal and the interview at the renewal itself. A form that is late or incomplete can put a case at risk, and it is easy to lose track of when approvals used to run three years.
The SNAP & Medicaid Renewal Organizer puts those dates in one system. It includes 51 state packs, a renewal document checklist and a renewal and reporting calendar, and it explains who is exempt from the SNAP work-rule time limit.
Get the six-month report calendar and renewal checklist for FoodShare members 60 to 64 →
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
