# 2026-22944: SNAP Work Rules Get a Proposed Tune-Up, Not a Plot Twist 2026-22944, Modification to Work Requirements for Able-Bodied Adults, is a Federal Register proposed rule from Agriculture Department, Food and Nutrition Administration published 2026-11-10, effective Written comments must be received on or before December 10, 2026.; deemed significant under Executive Order 12866; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-11-11). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22944 - As of: 2026-11-11 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Document number: 2026-22944 - Title: Modification to Work Requirements for Able-Bodied Adults - Type: Proposed Rule - Agencies: Agriculture Department; Food and Nutrition Administration - Citation: 91 FR 72439 - Published: 2026-11-10 - Effective: Written comments must be received on or before December 10, 2026. - Comments close: 2026-12-10 - Significant: yes (OIRA_API) - Touches household money: yes - Regulation identifier numbers: 0584-AF09 - Last updated: 2026-11-11 ## In one line SNAP Work Rules Get a Proposed Tune-Up, Not a Plot Twist ## Summary This new rule changes work requirements for able-bodied adults on SNAP, giving some people more time before they lose benefits if they don’t work or train. It updates who can skip the time limit, adds special exceptions for Alaska and Hawaii, and tightens rules for requesting waivers. These changes could affect many SNAP participants starting after the rule is finalized, aiming to make the program fairer and clearer. ## Abstract The proposed rule would codify USDA's regulatory implementation of provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 (OBBB) changing the three-month time limit for certain participants subject to work requirements in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). These changes include modifying the list of exceptions from the time limit for certain populations; updating requirements for areas to qualify for waivers of the time limit; and adding the temporary good faith exemptions in Alaska and Hawaii. Additionally, this rule proposes to strengthen requirements for requesting waivers of the time limit and revise the SNAP definition of a homeless individual. ## Effects PRIA read - People aged 60–64 newly time‑limited: cost, high. The rule makes people aged 18 through 64 the group subject to the SNAP time limit and raises the age-based exception to 65 or older. As a result, individuals aged 60 through 64—who are not subject to the general work requirements—are now time-limited and may receive SNAP for only three months in a… - Parent exception narrowed to under‑14: cost, high. The rule updates the parent/household member exception so it applies only if responsible for a dependent child under age 14 (changed from under 18). Parents or household members caring for dependent children aged 14–17 are therefore no longer automatically excepted from the SNAP time limit. - Temporary FRA exceptions removed (homeless, veterans, foster youth): cost, high. The rule codifies the OBBB removal of temporary exceptions that had been added by the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023: homeless individuals, veterans, and individuals 24 years of age or younger who were in foster care on their 18th birthday are no longer exceptions from the SNAP time limit. - SNAP 'homeless' definition narrowed: cost, medium. The Department proposes reverting the SNAP definition of 'homeless individual' to remove the phrase 'imminently homeless,' returning to the statutory language in 7 CFR 271.2. - Waivers limited to high unemployment areas: cost, high. The rule removes the waiver criterion based on a 'lack of sufficient jobs' and limits waivers to areas with unemployment rates over 10 percent (except noncontiguous States). Time-limited waivers granted under the former 'lack of sufficient jobs' criterion would no longer be available under the new… - Alaska & Hawaii: special thresholds and temporary exemptions: benefit, medium. For noncontiguous States (identified as Alaska and Hawaii), waivers may be approved when an area's unemployment rate is at or above 1.5 times the national average. The rule also codifies a temporary 'good faith' exemption for noncontiguous States that the Department may approve if the State demonst… - Tighter waiver rules, data, and durations: cost, high. The rule would tighten waiver approval standards: require BLS or BLS-cooperating agency data showing a recent 12‑month average unemployment rate for waiver requests (with limited exceptions for exceptional circumstances or areas lacking BLS data); define allowable waiver 'areas' to be Commuting Zon… ## Related documents - [2026-22936](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22936): Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Reforming Categorical Eligibility, 2026-11-10 - [2026-22679](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22679): Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): Online Ordering and Transactions and Food Delivery Revisions…, 2026-11-06 - [2026-21658](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-21658): Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Electronic Benefits Transfer Card Security Measures, 2026-10-23 - [2026-16760](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-16760): Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Changes in Federal-State Administrative Cost Sharing; Extension of Comment Period, 2026-08-17 - [2026-12696](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-12696): Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Changes in Federal-State Administrative Cost Sharing, 2026-06-24 - [2026-22876](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22876): The Emergency Food Assistance Program; Availability of Foods for Fiscal Year 2027, 2026-11-10 ## Sources - [2026-22944 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/11/10/2026-22944/modification-to-work-requirements-for-able-bodied-adults) - [2026-22944 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-11-10/pdf/2026-22944.pdf) ## Related - [Previous: 2026-22936, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Reforming Categorical Eligibility](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22936) - [Next: 2026-22951, Special Conditions: Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, Model GVII-G400 Airplane;…](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22951) - [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-22944 (as of 2026-11-11).