Category: Government Programs
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SNAP authority, flood insurance and about two dozen VA programs are funded only through December 11 under the law enacted in September
Congress has paid for SNAP, the national flood insurance program and about two dozen Veterans Affairs programs only through December 11, 2026. That is the end date in Public Law 119-103, the stopgap spending law approved September 2. The law sets the date and does not say what happens on the 12th, so for now…
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Kentucky will require Medicaid expansion adults to log 80 hours in three of the six months before each renewal from January 1, with copays from October 2028
Kentucky will start requiring some Medicaid members to prove they are working or serving their community on January 1, 2027. Under the new rule, adults on the state’s Medicaid expansion must show 80 hours of work or community engagement in at least three of the six months before each renewal, according to the Kentucky Health…
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Hawaii’s SNAP benefits fell again on October 1 by an average $8.55 a person, taking a one-person maximum from $506 to $496, with more cuts due through 2029
Hawaii’s food stamp checks got smaller again on October 1. The state’s Department of Human Services says recipients will see a decrease of $8.55 per person on average compared with the year before, and it says the reductions are scheduled to keep coming every year through federal fiscal year 2029. The new Hawaii maximums The…
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The FCC is setting up new data matches to check Lifeline phone-discount applicants in Connecticut and Georgia against SNAP enrollment records
People who sign up for a Lifeline phone discount in Connecticut and Georgia will soon have their SNAP enrollment checked directly with the state. The Federal Communications Commission published two notices on Sept. 29, 2026, announcing computer matching programs with each state. The matches begin Oct. 29 and run for 18 months. What the notices…
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Oregon’s SNAP rolls fell to 639,261 people in 395,448 households in August, from more than 740,000 people the state reported in September 2025
Oregon had 639,261 people on SNAP in August 2026, living in 395,448 households. A year earlier the picture was different. In a Sept. 30, 2025 release, the Oregon Department of Human Services said more than 740,000 people in the state were receiving SNAP, the federal food benefit once called food stamps. What the state’s data…
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Iowa and West Virginia SNAP shoppers can still buy soda because a court vacated both states’ bans, leaving 5 of 23 listed states blocked
SNAP shoppers in Iowa and West Virginia can still use their cards to buy soda, because a federal court wiped out the approvals behind both states’ bans. Iowa and West Virginia are two of five states where the order applies. USDA’s list shows 23 states with food restriction waivers, so five of them are blocked…
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Colorado’s SNAP soft-drink ban, rescheduled for Oct. 30, cannot proceed after a federal court in Washington vacated USDA’s approval
Colorado SNAP cards are set to keep buying soda on Oct. 30, the date the state’s soft-drink ban was supposed to begin. A federal court threw out the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s approval of the ban in June, and the order says the waiver “may not proceed.” What Colorado planned Colorado asked USDA to change…
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CalPERS members who buy service credit on or after Jan. 1, 2028 can no longer pay it off through a permanent pension reduction and must pay in full within 90 days of retiring
Public pension members who plan to buy extra service credit have a deadline that most of them have never heard of. CalPERS says that for purchases elected on or after Jan. 1, 2028, a member can no longer pay the balance off by taking a smaller pension for life. Instead, any balance still owed at…
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North Carolina’s State Health Plan extended open enrollment for its 750,000 members to Nov. 6, saying an Atrium Health pricing move caused confusion
North Carolina state employees, retirees and their families now have until Nov. 6, 2026 to choose 2027 coverage under the State Health Plan. The State Treasurer’s office extended open enrollment after Atrium Health announced a new member discount program less than a week before enrollment began. The Plan says the announcement created confusion among its…
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North Dakota’s SNAP candy and soda ban begins Nov. 1 after a USDA-requested delay, covering a program that had about 54,400 recipients in April
North Dakota’s SNAP card will stop covering candy, energy drinks and sweetened drinks on Nov. 1, two months later than planned. The state asked to move the start date from Sept. 1 at the direction of the federal government. The program it affects had just under 54,400 recipients in April. What the limit covers The…