California’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) experienced errors totaling $1.4 billion for Fiscal Year 2025, averaging $3.8 million daily. This situation is part of a broader trend where Southwestern states, including California, have reported high payment error rates, leading them to repay the federal government.
SNAP’s payment error rate reflects instances of overpayment or underpayment to households, often due to incomplete information from households or state data processing errors, rather than fraud. When states exceed the federally mandated 6% error threshold, they may face financial liabilities and must develop corrective action plans approved by the USDA.
In addition to California, Colorado and Nevada also struggle with high error rates in their SNAP programs. Colorado reported over $143 million in misallocated funds (approximately $393,000 daily), with an error rate of 10.09%. Nevada’s error rate was slightly better at 6.22%, costing taxpayers about $173,000 daily.
While some states maintain error rates below the threshold—such as Nebraska and Wisconsin—41 states plus Washington, D.C., exceeded it, leading to an overall national payment error rate of 10.62% for Fiscal Year 2025. This collectively accounts for about $10.17 billion in government waste.
Officials stress the importance of accountability in SNAP to ensure that food benefits reach eligible families effectively and efficiently.
