Lauren Bauer
@laurenhlb.bsky.social
Fellow | Economic Studies | @brookings.edu
Associate Director | @hamiltonproject.org
Board | @mazonusa.bsky.social
Ask me about SNAP
www.hamiltonproject.org
laurenhlb.01
Associate Director | @hamiltonproject.org
Board | @mazonusa.bsky.social
Ask me about SNAP
www.hamiltonproject.org
laurenhlb.01
Pinned
Lauren Bauer
@laurenhlb.bsky.social
· Feb 3
New and important: we built a federal expenditure tracker. All expenditure line items that are available on the Daily Treasury Statement.
USAID was zeroed out on 1/28 and has been at zero ever since.
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
#EconSky
USAID was zeroed out on 1/28 and has been at zero ever since.
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
#EconSky
Need a conversation starter for Thanksgiving? The Hamilton Project is hiring for a research assistant to join our team.
Please circulate widely or apply here:
careers-brookings.icims.com/jobs/3757/re...
Learn more about @hamiltonproject.org here:
www.hamiltonproject.org
#EconSky
Please circulate widely or apply here:
careers-brookings.icims.com/jobs/3757/re...
Learn more about @hamiltonproject.org here:
www.hamiltonproject.org
#EconSky
The Hamilton Project
The Hamilton Project produces evidence-based policy proposals and analyses to promote broad-based economic growth.
www.hamiltonproject.org
November 25, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Need a conversation starter for Thanksgiving? The Hamilton Project is hiring for a research assistant to join our team.
Please circulate widely or apply here:
careers-brookings.icims.com/jobs/3757/re...
Learn more about @hamiltonproject.org here:
www.hamiltonproject.org
#EconSky
Please circulate widely or apply here:
careers-brookings.icims.com/jobs/3757/re...
Learn more about @hamiltonproject.org here:
www.hamiltonproject.org
#EconSky
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
Look, women no longer do shit for free is actually at the root of a lot of social disruption. The question is whether you think the solution is women going back to being unpaid and unprotected by their own labor.
November 25, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Look, women no longer do shit for free is actually at the root of a lot of social disruption. The question is whether you think the solution is women going back to being unpaid and unprotected by their own labor.
The Hamilton Project is holding two events in December on:
- AI regulation
- the state of school accountability on ESSA's 10th anniversary.
Register here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/opport...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/k-12-e...
- AI regulation
- the state of school accountability on ESSA's 10th anniversary.
Register here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/opport...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/k-12-e...
November 24, 2025 at 7:00 PM
The Hamilton Project is holding two events in December on:
- AI regulation
- the state of school accountability on ESSA's 10th anniversary.
Register here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/opport...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/k-12-e...
- AI regulation
- the state of school accountability on ESSA's 10th anniversary.
Register here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/opport...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/k-12-e...
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
NEW:
In 2024, Tierra Walker was sick and getting sicker. She was also pregnant.
She knew abortion was illegal in Texas, but thought there was an exception for women like her, whose health was at risk. Doctors told her there was no emergency.
Then she died.
www.propublica.org/article/texa...
In 2024, Tierra Walker was sick and getting sicker. She was also pregnant.
She knew abortion was illegal in Texas, but thought there was an exception for women like her, whose health was at risk. Doctors told her there was no emergency.
Then she died.
www.propublica.org/article/texa...
“Ticking Time Bomb”: A Pregnant Mother Kept Getting Sicker. She Died After She Couldn’t Get an Abortion in Texas.
Walker is one of several women ProPublica found with underlying health conditions who died when they couldn’t access abortions.
www.propublica.org
November 19, 2025 at 11:08 AM
NEW:
In 2024, Tierra Walker was sick and getting sicker. She was also pregnant.
She knew abortion was illegal in Texas, but thought there was an exception for women like her, whose health was at risk. Doctors told her there was no emergency.
Then she died.
www.propublica.org/article/texa...
In 2024, Tierra Walker was sick and getting sicker. She was also pregnant.
She knew abortion was illegal in Texas, but thought there was an exception for women like her, whose health was at risk. Doctors told her there was no emergency.
Then she died.
www.propublica.org/article/texa...
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
#FigureFriday: Amid ongoing uncertainty about SNAP funding, The Hamilton Project has created four figures visualizing federal outlays to SNAP for November 2025. The figures will update daily on weekdays, excluding federal holidays. www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
November 14, 2025 at 3:33 PM
#FigureFriday: Amid ongoing uncertainty about SNAP funding, The Hamilton Project has created four figures visualizing federal outlays to SNAP for November 2025. The figures will update daily on weekdays, excluding federal holidays. www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
“One way to think about the One Big Beautiful Bill is that it could end SNAP in some states, and it certainly ends SNAP as a national entitlement that is there for people in good economic times and bad.” @laurenhlb.bsky.social spoke to @Slate.com’s @shirinali.bsky.social about the OBBBA’s SNAP cuts:
Republicans Are Ripping a New Giant Hole in the Social Safety Net
After punishing hungry people during the government shutdown, the GOP has a new plan to make life harder for the most vulnerable.
slate.com
November 17, 2025 at 3:15 PM
“One way to think about the One Big Beautiful Bill is that it could end SNAP in some states, and it certainly ends SNAP as a national entitlement that is there for people in good economic times and bad.” @laurenhlb.bsky.social spoke to @Slate.com’s @shirinali.bsky.social about the OBBBA’s SNAP cuts:
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
This analysis from Brookings is probably going to be unfortunately prescient.
www.brookings.edu/articles/sna...
www.brookings.edu/articles/sna...
SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will significantly impair recession response | Brookings
Lauren Bauer and Diane Schanzenbach analyze how SNAP cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will affect the program’s response to recessions.
www.brookings.edu
November 12, 2025 at 2:52 PM
This analysis from Brookings is probably going to be unfortunately prescient.
www.brookings.edu/articles/sna...
www.brookings.edu/articles/sna...
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
This means the order that full SNAP benefits for November be paid out now remains blocked by the Supreme Court through the end of Thursday.
November 11, 2025 at 11:16 PM
This means the order that full SNAP benefits for November be paid out now remains blocked by the Supreme Court through the end of Thursday.
Where are SNAP benefits being delivered?
November 1 (left): No SNAP benefits delivered anywhere.
Morning of November 10 (right): If the state/county is a lighter color than the left, at least partial benefits were delivered in the past few days. If it's a darker color, still nothing...
November 1 (left): No SNAP benefits delivered anywhere.
Morning of November 10 (right): If the state/county is a lighter color than the left, at least partial benefits were delivered in the past few days. If it's a darker color, still nothing...
November 10, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Where are SNAP benefits being delivered?
November 1 (left): No SNAP benefits delivered anywhere.
Morning of November 10 (right): If the state/county is a lighter color than the left, at least partial benefits were delivered in the past few days. If it's a darker color, still nothing...
November 1 (left): No SNAP benefits delivered anywhere.
Morning of November 10 (right): If the state/county is a lighter color than the left, at least partial benefits were delivered in the past few days. If it's a darker color, still nothing...
@crampell.bsky.social gets @davidasuper.bsky.social to weigh in: he says that no, states do not have to CLAW BACK properly issued benefits.
November 9, 2025 at 4:22 PM
@crampell.bsky.social gets @davidasuper.bsky.social to weigh in: he says that no, states do not have to CLAW BACK properly issued benefits.
SNAP update. Insane one. So USDA is now saying on a huge lag:
- issue partial payments using a bad-math formula;
- CLAW BACK full issuances that any state sent *properly* under last week's guidance;
- if you don't CLAW BACK benefits, we won't pay the federal share of SNAP administrative costs (??)
- issue partial payments using a bad-math formula;
- CLAW BACK full issuances that any state sent *properly* under last week's guidance;
- if you don't CLAW BACK benefits, we won't pay the federal share of SNAP administrative costs (??)
November 9, 2025 at 3:37 PM
SNAP update. Insane one. So USDA is now saying on a huge lag:
- issue partial payments using a bad-math formula;
- CLAW BACK full issuances that any state sent *properly* under last week's guidance;
- if you don't CLAW BACK benefits, we won't pay the federal share of SNAP administrative costs (??)
- issue partial payments using a bad-math formula;
- CLAW BACK full issuances that any state sent *properly* under last week's guidance;
- if you don't CLAW BACK benefits, we won't pay the federal share of SNAP administrative costs (??)
The Propel data are the best way to see what is going on with SNAP benefit delivery on a national level.
www.propel.app/shutdown-fun...
On November 3, New Mexico delivered SNAP benefits.
www.propel.app/shutdown-fun...
On November 3, New Mexico delivered SNAP benefits.
November 8, 2025 at 8:47 PM
The Propel data are the best way to see what is going on with SNAP benefit delivery on a national level.
www.propel.app/shutdown-fun...
On November 3, New Mexico delivered SNAP benefits.
www.propel.app/shutdown-fun...
On November 3, New Mexico delivered SNAP benefits.
Actually, if the President decided to do so and change his mind once again, he had the authority and the funds to pay SNAP benefits in full.
The fate of SNAP was once again in question on Saturday after the Supreme Court temporarily agreed to allow the Trump administration to withhold full aid under the food stamp program.
Supreme Court Ruling on SNAP Benefits Leaves Families in Limbo
The fate of SNAP was once again in question on Saturday after the Supreme Court temporarily agreed to allow the Trump administration to withhold full aid under the program.
nyti.ms
November 8, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Actually, if the President decided to do so and change his mind once again, he had the authority and the funds to pay SNAP benefits in full.
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
Low-income households denied SNAP due to administrative barriers suffer downstream consequences. Process-related denials increase debt, delinquencies, and decrease credit scores, from Tatiana Homonoff, Min S. Lee, and Katherine Meckel www.nber.org/papers/w34434
November 8, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Low-income households denied SNAP due to administrative barriers suffer downstream consequences. Process-related denials increase debt, delinquencies, and decrease credit scores, from Tatiana Homonoff, Min S. Lee, and Katherine Meckel www.nber.org/papers/w34434
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
BREAKING: DOJ goes to SCOTUS trying to stop a district court order that USDA pay out full SNAP benefits this month.
The First Circuit denied an administrative stay, but has not yet ruled on the stay request. And, CNN reported that USDA is already processing payments.
DOJ went to SCOTUS anyway.
The First Circuit denied an administrative stay, but has not yet ruled on the stay request. And, CNN reported that USDA is already processing payments.
DOJ went to SCOTUS anyway.
November 7, 2025 at 11:50 PM
BREAKING: DOJ goes to SCOTUS trying to stop a district court order that USDA pay out full SNAP benefits this month.
The First Circuit denied an administrative stay, but has not yet ruled on the stay request. And, CNN reported that USDA is already processing payments.
DOJ went to SCOTUS anyway.
The First Circuit denied an administrative stay, but has not yet ruled on the stay request. And, CNN reported that USDA is already processing payments.
DOJ went to SCOTUS anyway.
right hand left hand
New guidance from USDA says they will administer full SNAP benefits.
However, less than 45 minutes ago, the Attorney General tweeted about asking for a stay on the order forcing full benefits.
Seems weird to send this guidance if they’re hoping for a stay by 4pm.
However, less than 45 minutes ago, the Attorney General tweeted about asking for a stay on the order forcing full benefits.
Seems weird to send this guidance if they’re hoping for a stay by 4pm.
November 7, 2025 at 7:30 PM
right hand left hand
NEW: we've pulled out the SNAP line item (from the Daily Treasury Statement) to follow along daily with federal outlays to the program.
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
1/2
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
1/2
November 7, 2025 at 4:29 PM
NEW: we've pulled out the SNAP line item (from the Daily Treasury Statement) to follow along daily with federal outlays to the program.
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
1/2
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
1/2
ICYMI: @hamiltonproject.org hosted a webinar on what is going on with SNAP with
@klobuchar.senate.gov, @davidasuper.bsky.social, Stacy Dean, Diane Schanzenbach & me.
Event recap, w/ transcript, and video are here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/addres...
@klobuchar.senate.gov, @davidasuper.bsky.social, Stacy Dean, Diane Schanzenbach & me.
Event recap, w/ transcript, and video are here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/addres...
Event recap—Addressing threats to the SNAP program - The Hamilton Project
On October 30, The Hamilton Project hosted a webcast to highlight the importance of SNAP amid the ongoing government shutdown and in the wake of major cuts to the program in the One Big Beautiful Bill...
www.hamiltonproject.org
November 7, 2025 at 3:31 PM
ICYMI: @hamiltonproject.org hosted a webinar on what is going on with SNAP with
@klobuchar.senate.gov, @davidasuper.bsky.social, Stacy Dean, Diane Schanzenbach & me.
Event recap, w/ transcript, and video are here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/addres...
@klobuchar.senate.gov, @davidasuper.bsky.social, Stacy Dean, Diane Schanzenbach & me.
Event recap, w/ transcript, and video are here:
www.hamiltonproject.org/publication/...
www.hamiltonproject.org/event/addres...
If you don’t give anyone SNAP, your payment error rate is 0!
If you just cancel flights, then they're actually not late! Brilliant stuff from Sean Duffy here
November 7, 2025 at 3:11 PM
If you don’t give anyone SNAP, your payment error rate is 0!
I do not want to lose to the dustbin of history that failing to send full SNAP benefits out on time was this Administration's choice. The money was there, is there, and is definitely not on EBT cards. And the authority was always there, regardless of the shutdown.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Federal judge orders Trump administration to fully fund SNAP benefits in November
A federal judge in Rhode Island ordered the Trump administration Thursday to find the money to fully fund SNAP benefits for November. The ruling by U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. gave Pres...
www.yahoo.com
November 6, 2025 at 9:47 PM
I do not want to lose to the dustbin of history that failing to send full SNAP benefits out on time was this Administration's choice. The money was there, is there, and is definitely not on EBT cards. And the authority was always there, regardless of the shutdown.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
I regret to inform you that this fix is still bad math. By reducing the SNAP maximum benefit in step one (even a better rate), some beneficiaries will get 65% of what they normally would, and any participating family with net income will get less than 65% of benefits, some will get less than half.
November 6, 2025 at 2:11 PM
I regret to inform you that this fix is still bad math. By reducing the SNAP maximum benefit in step one (even a better rate), some beneficiaries will get 65% of what they normally would, and any participating family with net income will get less than 65% of benefits, some will get less than half.
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
New data: CBPP analyzed USDA’s contingency fund spending plan & found it is only going to release 2/3 of the funding they committed to in court filings, cutting families’ SNAP benefits far more than necessary, violating USDA’s own regulations & shortchanging millions of families.
November 5, 2025 at 4:40 PM
New data: CBPP analyzed USDA’s contingency fund spending plan & found it is only going to release 2/3 of the funding they committed to in court filings, cutting families’ SNAP benefits far more than necessary, violating USDA’s own regulations & shortchanging millions of families.
As far as I can tell (Propel data), no benefit money has been outlaid 11/1-11/4.
Only $90M in federal outlays to SNAP went out on 11/4. Lowest single day outlay in 3 years (as far as the tracker goes back).
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
#EconSky #SNAP
Only $90M in federal outlays to SNAP went out on 11/4. Lowest single day outlay in 3 years (as far as the tracker goes back).
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
#EconSky #SNAP
November 5, 2025 at 9:42 PM
As far as I can tell (Propel data), no benefit money has been outlaid 11/1-11/4.
Only $90M in federal outlays to SNAP went out on 11/4. Lowest single day outlay in 3 years (as far as the tracker goes back).
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
#EconSky #SNAP
Only $90M in federal outlays to SNAP went out on 11/4. Lowest single day outlay in 3 years (as far as the tracker goes back).
www.hamiltonproject.org/data/trackin...
#EconSky #SNAP
Reposted by Lauren Bauer
If SNAP math is hurting your brain today, this is shows why USDA's 50% cut to maximum SNAP benefits translates into a much deeper cut to average benefits.
Only households receiving the maximum benefit will see a 50% cut under USDA's plan – and everyone else gets cut more deeply.
Only households receiving the maximum benefit will see a 50% cut under USDA's plan – and everyone else gets cut more deeply.
So the range of outcomes is
- 50 percent of benefits
- less than 50 percent of benefits
- no benefits at all
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/u...
- 50 percent of benefits
- less than 50 percent of benefits
- no benefits at all
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/u...
Some SNAP Recipients May Not Receive Food Stamps Under White House Policy
www.nytimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:06 PM
If SNAP math is hurting your brain today, this is shows why USDA's 50% cut to maximum SNAP benefits translates into a much deeper cut to average benefits.
Only households receiving the maximum benefit will see a 50% cut under USDA's plan – and everyone else gets cut more deeply.
Only households receiving the maximum benefit will see a 50% cut under USDA's plan – and everyone else gets cut more deeply.
NEWS (?):
The formula that USDA has asked states to use to get to 50 percent of SNAP benefits *does not produce a number that is 50 percent of benefits* for any family that has net income.
Illustrative example below.
www.fns.usda.gov/snap/benefit...
The formula that USDA has asked states to use to get to 50 percent of SNAP benefits *does not produce a number that is 50 percent of benefits* for any family that has net income.
Illustrative example below.
www.fns.usda.gov/snap/benefit...
November 5, 2025 at 3:02 PM
NEWS (?):
The formula that USDA has asked states to use to get to 50 percent of SNAP benefits *does not produce a number that is 50 percent of benefits* for any family that has net income.
Illustrative example below.
www.fns.usda.gov/snap/benefit...
The formula that USDA has asked states to use to get to 50 percent of SNAP benefits *does not produce a number that is 50 percent of benefits* for any family that has net income.
Illustrative example below.
www.fns.usda.gov/snap/benefit...