WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is taking a look at changing who is eligible for food stamps.
The USDA will rein in the broad-based categorical eligibility, CNN reported.
People with higher incomes and savings may be eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, under the categorical eligibility, which helps streamline the application process. It allows people to apply for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and gets rid of the asset test and offers a higher income threshold.
The Associated Press reported that people can qualify for the least amount of benefits from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and still get SNAP benefits.
The proposed change announced Tuesday will require some beneficiaries to work to be eligible to claim benefits. The department is also looking at how the poverty threshold is calculated.
Recently, the TANF application, which some call a loophole, allowed a millionaire to get financial help, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said, according to CNN.
"That's is why we are changing the rules, preventing abuse of a critical safety net system, so those who need food assistance the most are the only ones who received it," Perdue said, according to CNN.
The proposal will require those getting TANF to qualify for at least $50 a month in benefits for at least six months before SNAP benefits are automatically granted, the AP reported.
Click here to read more on the proposal from the USDA. The public can comment on the proposal for the next 60 days, the AP reported.
SNAP currently helps 38 million people to put food on the table.
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