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Increase to Social Security, Veterans Benefits Largest in 40 Years, Will Affect SNAP, Other Benefits

Published December 21, 2021

A 2022 increase to Social Security and veterans benefits will be the largest increase in 40 years. This increase will result in decreases in some residents’ SNAP and other benefits.

A federal cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to Social Security and veterans benefits for 2022 will result in decreases to some Louisiana residents’ Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, formerly known as food stamps, as well as benefits through the Family Independence Temporary Assistance Program (FITAP).

The COLA is an annual adjustment based on changes in the US Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers.

Monthly Social Security Retirement, Survivors and Disability Insurance (RSDI), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), and Veterans Administration (VA) benefits will increase by 5.9% as a result of the 2022 COLA. For some Louisiana households, the rise in income will have an impact on eligibility and federal assistance.

Benefits have increased by 5.9%, which is the biggest rise since 1982.

Due to the COLA, 75,122 households (about 18 percent of all SNAP households in Louisiana) will suffer a monthly benefit drop of around $31 in January. Another 272 SNAP cases will be closed as a result of increasing income pushing those households beyond the income limit. The COLA will also result in benefit decreases for 7 FITAP-eligible Louisiana households.

The Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) receives an electronic file containing individual benefit amounts from the Social Security Administration. The SNAP and FITAP cases have been automatically amended, and the adjustments will take effect in January 2022.

For more information about SNAP, visit www.dcfs.la.gov/SNAP.

For more information about the federal COLA, visit the Social Security Administration at www.ssa.gov/cola and the Veterans Administration at www.benefits.va.gov/compensation/rates-index.asp#cola.