Congress·In Committee·H.R. 6986

House Bill Would Shield SNAP Recipients From Losing Benefits Due to Social Security COLAs

COLAs Don’t Count Act of 2026

2 months ago·View on Congress.gov

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Key Points

For SNAP (food assistance), the bill says yearly benefit increases for Social Security and similar programs would not be counted as “income” for a period of time.
This aims to stop people from losing SNAP or getting less help just because their Social Security, disability, railroad retirement, or certain veterans benefits got a cost-of-living raise.
It would apply if the household was already getting SNAP or had been approved in the month right before the COLA increase takes effect.
It also excludes certain extra state-paid supplemental payments tied to disability benefits from being counted as income for SNAP.
The change would start October 1, 2027, not right away.

Consumer ProtectionSocial SecurityVeteransHousing

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

How this policy affects specific groups of people

Mixed Impacts(2)

Unemployment Benefits

Neutral

Housing Assistance

Neutral

Positive Impacts(6)

Retiree

Helps

Snap Food Stamps

Helps

Social Security

Helps

Disability Benefits

Helps

Military Veteran

Helps

Veterans Benefits

Helps

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Jan 8, 2026House

Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.

Jan 8, 2026

Introduced in House

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

In the months leading up to Oct. 1, 2027

State SNAP agencies update eligibility and benefit calculation systems for the new exclusions.

You may see fewer mid-year benefit changes tied to COLAs; some households may need to respond to mail notices as states update cases.

Each time an eligible COLA takes effect after Oct. 1, 2027

Households already on SNAP when a COLA takes effect keep that COLA from reducing SNAP through Sept. 30 of that fiscal year.

A COLA that starts during the fiscal year would be less likely to cause an immediate SNAP cut, helping you keep grocery money steadier for the rest of that fiscal year.

Starting with SNAP benefit determinations on/after Oct. 1, 2027

SNAP calculations stop counting SSI state supplement payments (SSA section 1616).

If you get an SSI state supplement, you could qualify for SNAP more easily or receive a bigger SNAP amount than before.

Related News

3 articles

Vermont Business Magazine·2 months ago

Welch reintroduces bill to bolster SNAP benefits for Social Security recipients

Senator Peter Welch (D-VT) joined Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI) to reintroduce the COLAs Don’t Count Act. The legislation would allow SNAP households to deduct annual Social Security cost-of-living adjustments from their income when calculating eligibility, preventing benefit cuts for seniors.

Urban Milwaukee·2 months ago

Moore, Welch, Chu Reintroduce Bicameral Bill to Bolster SNAP Benefits for Social Security Recipients

Rep. Gwen Moore reintroduced the COLAs Don’t Count Act (H.R. 6986) to protect SNAP benefits from being reduced due to Social Security COLA increases. The bill aims to stop the 'benefits cliff' that affected 28,000 households in 2023, causing them to lose eligibility entirely.

CL+

Quiver Quantitative·2 months ago

Wyden Joins Colleagues to Reintroduce Bill Aimed at Protecting Food Assistance for Social Security Recipients

Senator Ron Wyden and colleagues reintroduced the COLAs Don’t Count Act to ensure SNAP recipients aren't cut off due to incremental income changes. The bill proposes exempting Social Security, railroad retirement, and veterans' benefit COLAs from income calculations for food assistance.