![Visual cues are provided for the fresh produce below in the grocery area of the Target in Minnetonka. ] JEFF WHEELER • jeff.wheeler@startribune.com Shoppers at the Target store in Minnetonka are getting a glimpse of the retailer's grocery overhaul, which is a major part of CEO Brian Cornell's blueprint for Target's future. The store, which is finishing up a $10 million renovation, is testing out some of the ideas Cornell has to remake its grocery department. The nearly-completed remodel o](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/KUPLDVQIVYO7OHT3MB6B2NWUVM.jpg?&w=1080)
Opinion editor's note: This article was submitted by leaders of multiple organizations involved in food and nutritional support. They are listed below.
Paolo and Joel, of St. Paul, applied for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to help feed their family when Joel was injured and forced to take time off work. After he recovered, Joel began working two jobs, seven days a week, to make ends meet. Yet the rising costs of rent and child care meant that the couple, despite their long workdays, still needed SNAP to give their kids nutritious, fresh food — something all parents want to provide for their families.
New rules proposed by the Trump administration threaten the food assistance used by Paolo, Joel, and at least 15,000 other working parents, seniors and Minnesotans with disabilities. Across the country, more than 3 million people would be stripped of the benefits currently keeping food on their tables.
If enacted, these rules will increase hunger in Minnesota by tightening eligibility requirements and curbing a provision that simplifies how SNAP is delivered.
Families making between 130% and 165% of the federal poverty level — or between about $27,000 and $34,000 a year for a family of three — currently qualify for $110 a month in food assistance through SNAP. This small amount helps but is still not enough on its own to cover the grocery bill each month. Despite the continued need, the new proposed limit means Minnesota families would no longer qualify for any assistance until they fell below the $27,000 threshold.
In addition, a family's assets could now be counted against their SNAP eligibility, meaning that most will be forced to drain their savings entirely before they can access SNAP. This move is counterproductive and especially harmful to Minnesota's seniors, as it will deplete families' hard-earned nest eggs and make it harder for the elderly to live independently.
Finally, eliminating the "broad-based categorical eligibility" provision will decrease participation in SNAP by complicating the application process for families who are already enrolled in other federal anti-poverty programs. State and local governments will face increased costs as they are forced to retrain employees and modify systems to respond to program changes.
Despite headlines proclaiming our country's strong economy, wages have not kept up with costs of living. Increasing numbers of Minnesotans need food assistance, as too many of us don't have access to the resources needed to weather a rough patch — like a lost job or illness.
