When low-income Americans enter the complex world of government support to get back on their feet, they often are ensnared in long-term poverty that keeps them in survival mode. Put simply, the safety net frequently fails to empower its recipients to find lasting opportunity. The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB), signed into law by President Trump, reforms to the two largest safety net programs—Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)—with the goal of empowering more beneficiaries to find self-sufficiency and safeguard these vital programs for the vulnerable.
As Alliance for Opportunity co-founder Randy Hicks said in City Journal, “The GOP is right to argue that work is part of a good life, and that some program recipients should be required to hold a job. But work requirements are only a first step. If the One Big Beautiful Bill becomes law, states will quickly discover that their administrative systems are ill-equipped to move recipients from welfare to work.” Implementing the OBBB reforms will require state legislatures and administrative officials to revamp their eligibility and case working systems in their state budgets so that beneficiaries find self-sufficiency, not red tape. It will also require states to integrate their safety net and workforce programs, following Utah’s successful “One Door” strategy.
Our latest policy brief breaks down the OBBB reforms in Medicaid and SNAP for state leaders and administrative officials. If properly implemented, the OBBB reforms will lead to greater prosperity for low-income Americans by ensuring that these vital programs fulfill their purpose by safeguarding them against fraud, so they are able to meet the vulnerable when they need assistance, and refocusing them on their long-term goals of independence through gainful employment or community engagement.