ATLANTA — The U.S. Department of Agriculture released a state-by-state report on error rates for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, popularly referred to as food stamps.
In Georgia, the reported error rate in 2025 was 15.2%.
Nationally, the USDA says there was $10.1 billion in improper payments, though that figure includes both overpayments and underpayments.
The Georgia Department of Human Services, which administers the program to low-income families, told Channel 2 Action News it is reviewing its options on how to proceed.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
The choices it has before it are to pay in full, file an appeal or reinvest the penalty submitted by the USDA into program improvement efforts.
Due to the errors reported in 41 states, Georgia included, billions of dollars are on the line to pay back to the U.S. government as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill, tax and spending law signed in 2025.
So, what does that mean for Georgia’s SNAP recipients?
“By law, states are required to correct payment errors — overpayments must be paid back to the state and the state must reimburse participants for underpayments — so that each household gets the correct amount based on their eligibility," the USDA says.
TRENDING STORIES:
- Another insurance company to lower rates in Georgia, save residents $33 million
- FIFA World Cup: Dozens of drones confiscated for defying no-fly zone
- Employees of downtown businesses in metro Atlanta city will get special parking
Agriculture Sec. Brooke Rollins said in a statement accompanying the error rate release that states need to do a better job managing these programs and that she hoped states take action to help those in need without adding to the waste.
“These payment error rates are further proof that state accountability is severely lacking in SNAP,” Rollins said. “USDA has taken historic action to help interested states curb SNAP waste, and I hope other states, regardless of political leadership, prioritize needy families and the American taxpayer over politics.”
Starting in October, states will have to pay 75% of their SNAP administrative costs and for states with error rates higher than 6%, they’ll have to pay parts of the benefit costs as well starting October 2027.
Right now, the federal government covers 100% of the benefit costs.
Georgia received a one-year cost-share delay, according to reporting by the Associated Press.
Officials said “Georgia calculates and tracks its error rate under a federally approved quality control plan and reports those figures to federal partners,” so the error rate report didn’t catch the department unaware.
Going forward, DHS said it is taking steps to improve the Georgia Gateway eligibility system, which is the application portal Georgians can use apply to participate in assistance programs like SNAP, WIC and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, among others.
Due to having a higher error rate than 6%, Georgia will be required to develop and execute a corrective action plan.
An examination of the system technology used is also underway, with the department saying it has “launched a formal market survey to identify proven technology solutions and has submitted waiver requests to federal regulators seeking authority to automate more of the eligibility process, which would further reduce the staff-level and client-submission mistakes that drive most payment errors.”
A DHS spokesperson said Georgia remains committed to getting this right for the people and families who depend on SNAP and that the state is pursuing every tool available to make the program more accurate.
A USDA web page notes that error rates for the SNAP program are not the same as fraud rates, saying “payment accuracy errors in SNAP are largely unintentional and can happen in one of two ways.”
Those ways are when someone is said to be eligible for SNAP but is not, or a participant receives more, or less, than they are entitled to through the program.
The USDA said SNAP error rates reflect program waste and the department takes payment errors very seriously.
Federal officials said they will work with states to address the root causes of the mistakes that lead to errors in their SNAP programs.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2026 Cox Media Group
