New Poverty Data Underscores Need for Congress to Reverse SNAP Cuts, Strengthen Federal Nutrition Programs for Maryland Residents
Media Contact:
Colleen Barton
cbarton@frac.org
703-203-7843
Statement Attributable to LaMonika Jones, director, Maryland Hunger Solutions
GAITHERSBURG, September 18, 2026 —Maryland Hunger Solutions is deeply disturbed by the latest poverty numbers released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Hundreds of thousands of Maryland residents still face the impossible choices between paying for food, housing, and medicine. These challenges are compounded by the harmful policy decisions made over the past year that weaken the very programs designed to reduce poverty and food insecurity across the state.
According to the latest Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) report, in 2025:
- Maryland’s SPM was over 10 percent in 2025, up 3 percentage points from 2024.
In 2025 alone, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helped 672,000 Maryland residents put food on the table, while school meals, Summer Nutrition Programs, afterschool and child care meals, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provided additional support that kept thousands of residents from falling deeper into hardship.
Despite SNAP’s many strengths, the budget reconciliation law, H.R. 1, slashed $187 billion from the program. Since then, nearly 38,000 Marylanders, including families with children, people with disabilities, veterans, and older adults, have lost access to SNAP.
Communities in every Maryland county are feeling the effects. Older adults are skipping meals; families are struggling to cover both food and rent; and people are turning to overwhelmed food banks because they no longer have SNAP to help stretch their grocery budget. Charity and our local governments cannot do it alone. Starting Oct. 1, Maryland will be responsible for covering 75 percent of SNAP’s administrative expenses, forcing states to make decisions between paying for transportation, education, or food assistance.
Policymakers should be advancing solutions that connect eligible households in the state to federal nutrition programs, not creating new barriers to participation.
Congress must heed the warning in the data, reverse harmful SNAP cuts and administrative and benefit cost shifts, and invest in proven solutions that help families put food on the table, reduce poverty, and improve our local economy.
It is time to end hunger. Maryland families can’t wait.
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Maryland Hunger Solutions, an initiative of the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC), works to end hunger and improve the nutrition, health, and well-being of Maryland residents.
