Texas SNAP application backlog skyrockets as families lose benefits

More and more North Texas families are asking for help finding food. The White House changed the rules for who is eligible for SNAP.

Texas’ SNAP application backlog has skyrocketed since the start of 2026, data shows, as more of the state faces burgeoning food insecurity.

The program’s application backlog for new cases skyrocketed to more than 150,000 pending applications in August, according to data from the state Health and Human Services Commission obtained by Texans Care for Children, a policy nonprofit.

“This is alarming,” said Diana Forester, director of health policy at Texans Care for Children. “It is very strange to me — I can’t believe it’s as big as it is.”

SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is a federal initiative that provides financial assistance to low-income families across the country to buy food. The program’s coverage has steadily declined in the last year, forcing families to make hard decisions to survive.

Food insecurity, or the inability to afford nutritious food, has risen in North Texas since 2021, according to estimates from Feeding America, a nonprofit network of U.S. food banks.

Click here to read more on this report from our partners at The Dallas Morning News.