"… The idea that if you're in high school or you're in community college and you're also going to work, that you could literally eliminate your parents' ability to feed your younger siblings doesn't make any sense."
In a recent interview, Lieutenant Governor John Husted summed up the challenging calculus families facing benefits cliffs are forced to navigate.
Under current policy, the wages earned by 18 to 21-year-olds count toward their family’s overall household income in determining the amount of SNAP benefits their household receives. This can lead to young people not getting jobs or entering work-based learning programs because they fear the wages they earn could cut their family's SNAP benefits.
And he has a creative policy solution to this obstacle faced by low-income students. The Lt. Governor submitted a letter of support for the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services' waiver request to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for a SNAP earned-income disregard for Ohio secondary students ages 18 to 21.
This would allow working secondary students to earn a bit more without jeopardizing their families’ SNAP benefits. The change would help an estimated 50,000 Ohioans and their families.
Disregarding earned income means that a small amount of the money from wages from working are not included in eligibility calculations. This proposal would incentivize work, provide a benefits off-ramp, and immediately and directly reduce cliff effects. That’s why earned income disregards are a key component of Economic Mobility Alliance Ohio’s policy priorities.
The Lt. Governor is right: Ohioans shouldn’t have to choose between making ends meet and improving their job and career prospects. Let’s do something about it.
Explore our recent work on benefits cliffs
Employees may avoid the benefit cliff with the new Benefit Bridge Employer Pilot Program
Three strategies to address Ohio’s ‘benefit cliff’
Policy change can reduce benefits cliffs and incentivize work
