WACO, Texas — For Waco resident Antonio Majors, keeping his family of six fed has become increasingly difficult as grocery costs put pressure on the household budget.
Majors, who has lived in Waco his entire life, said he has had to work harder to make sure his family has enough to eat.
“I got to work extra hard just to make sure I can eat, and I wasn't used to that, so it affected a whole lot to me and my family,” Majors said.
His concerns come as the U.S. Department of Agriculture moves forward with a proposed change to eligibility rules for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP.
The proposal would restrict a policy known as broad-based categorical eligibility, or BBCE, which allows states to automatically qualify certain households for SNAP based on their eligibility for benefits funded through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.
Under the proposal, automatic SNAP eligibility would generally be limited to households receiving direct TANF cash assistance. Other households would instead have to meet SNAP's standard federal income and asset requirements.
The USDA estimates that once the proposal is fully implemented, about 6.3 million people in 3.2 million households could become ineligible for SNAP, representing nearly 18% of current program participants.
For Majors, the possibility of fewer families having access to food assistance raises concerns that go beyond his own household.
“There's a lot of kids out here now that's going to schools just looking for a meal that's just so used to being able to go to the refrigerators and get it because of EBT,” Majors said.
Majors said adults may be able to respond to financial pressure by working more hours, but children do not have that same option.
“Trump, you know, he... taken away from kids,” Majors said. “As grown folks, you know, we can get up and go get it on our own, but our kids... they can't go do it for their own. That's who's hurting.”
For families currently receiving SNAP, nothing changes immediately. The proposal is not a final rule, and the USDA would still have to complete the federal rule making process before establishing an effective date. Public comments on the proposal are being accepted through Dec. 10, 2026.
For Majors, the debate in Washington comes down to a much more immediate concern in Waco: whether families can continue putting enough food on the table.
This story was originally reported on air by Alexa Conroy and was converted to a digital format with the assistance of artificial intelligence. It was reviewed and edited for accuracy before publication.
