![\"Customer](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Photo-1-Customer-Paying-with-SNAP-Benefits.jpg\")
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The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program was established by the Food Stamp Act of 1964 to strengthen the agricultural economy and provide improved nutrition to low-income households. Photo by Kylie Clifton<\/p>\n
Bronx resident Anthony Powell arrived at his local Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) center at 8:30 a.m., as he\u2019s done routinely since losing his benefits in May.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The last time he visited the office, he struggled to fill out an online application to get his benefits restored and was mistakenly classified as homeless.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
This month, after waiting five hours, Powell, who is 68, had to leave to take his medication.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI just keep running around, everything is being done by these computers,\u201d Powell said. \u201cI have days where I have to assess, \u2018Am I going to go outside today?\u2019 Because if you go out, you have to eat.\u201d<\/p>\n
Powell\u2019s situation may soon become more pervasive for many in his neighborhood. In New York\u2019s 15th congressional district, nearly 125,000 households \u2014 43.5% of the district\u2019s total \u2014 received SNAP benefits in 2023. It was the congressional district with the highest SNAP usage per household in the country in 2023, according to the U.S. Census Bureau\u2019s American Community Survey<\/a>\u00a0and it remains one of the highest.<\/p>\n The One Big Beautiful Bill Act<\/a>, signed by President Donald Trump in July, aims to reduce federal funding for SNAP, tighten work certification requirements and end food assistance for millions of people. In addition to the systemic cuts, millions of Americans are at risk of losing their food aid due to the ongoing government shutdown.\u00a0<\/p>\n If the shutdown continues, SNAP benefit users won\u2019t receive next month\u2019s aid on Nov. 1.\n<\/p>\n \u201cThe so-called \u2018Big Ugly Bill\u2019 is not just a political threat, it\u2019s a direct assault on the most vulnerable in our community,\u201d New York State Senator Luis Sep\u00falveda told the Bronx Times. \u201cOur community faces the loss of more than $900 million in SNAP benefits.\u201d<\/p>\n Congress established SNAP in 1964 as part of the Food Stamp Act<\/a>. It also set a standard of care that was respected around the world. That global standard is now in jeopardy, says Glenn Denning, author of \u201cUniversal Food Security\u201d and professor at Columbia University.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re living in a time when we should be seriously looking [at] increasing social safety net programs, not decreasing them,\u201d he said.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n In 2024, the program served 41.7 million people per month<\/a>, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The new bill cuts SNAP benefits by $184 billion through 2034, about 20% nationwide, according to Sep\u00falveda.<\/p>\n \u201cDue to this substantial reduction, New York State will have to spend an additional $2.1 billion annually to be able to maintain current SNAP benefits,\u201d Sepulveda said.<\/p>\n In New York State, nearly 3 million residents rely on SNAP. About 300,000 households are projected to lose some or all their benefits, with an average loss of $220 per month, according to a July statement<\/a> by Governor Kathy Hochul.<\/p>\n Experts like Pamela Koch, an associate professor of nutrition and education at Columbia University say these cuts will dramatically affect many people\u2019s access to food.<\/p>\n \u201cI definitely think it could lead to more hunger in the Bronx neighborhoods.\u201d\u00a0\n<\/p>\n According to Safira Korin, manager of Sese Family Deli, a family-owned business in East Tremont, 99% of their customers make purchases using SNAP.<\/p>\n \u201cSese is not going to be able to pay the rent,\u201d Korin said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be World War Three; the economy is already bad enough. There\u2019s going to be a lot of crime, stealing and we\u2019re going to hurt each other more.\u201d<\/p>\n Regina Harvin, a Bronx resident who hasn\u2019t had SNAP benefits for five months, agrees. She says the cuts to SNAP will lead to a rise in theft in the Bronx due to food insecurity.<\/p>\n \u201cThere will be more crime than ever before,\u201d Harvin said. \u201cWhen people can\u2019t feed their kids, they\u2019re going to steal.\u201d Every Saturday, Bethel Prayer Ministry hosts a food bank that serves 150 to 200 residents. The local ministry is one of many that serves East Tremont residents on a weekly basis. Rising grocery costs have resulted in increased demand for Bethel Prayer Ministry in 2025.<\/p>\n \u201cThe line keeps getting longer and longer,\u201d said Akwasi Prempeh, Bethel Prayer Ministry supervisor. \u201cWith rising cost of food, it\u2019s going to make it difficult for a lot of families. It\u2019s going to bring hardship onto them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n After multiple attempts, Powell successfully reinstated his benefits, but says the SNAP system was broken and is in favor of the new bill. Powell has observed alleged misuse of benefits, including selling food stamps for independent gain, he said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Other residents disagree. Maria Robles, grandmother to eight children, receives $291 a month in SNAP benefits \u2014 money that is critical to providing her family with enough food. She has been avoiding watching the news out of fear.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s going to be hard. Trump wants to make the rich richer, and the poor poorer,\u201d Robles said. \u201cWe\u2019re poor already. How much poorer do we need to be?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Kylie Clifton is a contributing writer at the Bronx Times and a data journalism student at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She can be reached at\u00a0kylie.clifton23@gmail.com<\/a>\u00a0or (269) 615-0800.\u00a0For more coverage, subscribe to our\u00a0newsletter<\/a>\u00a0and follow us on\u00a0Twitter<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>!<\/p>\n \t<\/p>\n
\n![\"Sese](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Photo-2-Sese-Family-Deli.jpg\")
At Sese Family Deli in East Tremont, more than 99% of customers pay with SNAP benefits. Photo by Kylie Clifton\n<\/p>\n