by Valerie Scott, Oklahoma Watch
July 24, 2025

President Donald Trump’s budget bill brings stricter rules to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the federal food assistance program, and shifts costs to states, putting an estimated 131,000 Oklahomans at risk of losing food benefits.

That’s about one-sixth of the 686,800 SNAP users in Oklahoma, which includes 255,000 children and 68,000 seniors.

One estimate showed Oklahoma could lose $628 million in 2029, a 39.3% reduction.

The bill requires states to assume a greater share of costs previously covered by the federal government. The share is based on the error rates within the SNAP program. Beginning in 2028, states that pass a 6% error rate must pay 5% to 15% of the cost for food benefits.

As of fiscal year 2024, Oklahoma’s error rate was at 10.87%, requiring tax money to pay the highest bracket of cost-sharing at 15%. With 17% of Oklahoma residents on SNAP, the state spent $1.51 billion on benefits in fiscal 2024. 

It is unclear where Oklahoma will source the funding and whether the state has the resources to fill in the growing gaps.

“I don’t think we will cut out SNAP, but I also don’t think Oklahoma is prepared to pay,” U.S. Rep. Tom Cole said. “There is certainly a need for the program. It is up to the state; I believe Oklahoma will make responsible decisions.”

In Cole’s district alone, 25,000 Oklahoma households will be at risk of losing SNAP benefits.

Trump signed the bill on July 4. In addition to SNAP, it cuts other safety net programs such as Medicaid. There was overwhelming support in Congress from Republican lawmakers, with support from all but three. Senators Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Susan Collins of Maine joined all Democrats in voting against the bill. 

“This is an extraordinary piece of legislation,” said U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Moore. “It includes all of Trump’s promises-energy independence, border security, and addresses entitlements in respect to Medicaid. There are problem areas, but when you pull off something this big there will be areas to address.” 

Key points from the new law:

• Cuts back on the increases in SNAP benefits based on the Thrifty Food Plan
• Expands work requirement to parents with children over the age of 14, adults aged 55 to 64, foster youths who have aged out of the system, veterans and people experiencing homelessness
• Refugees, people granted asylum, certain survivors of domestic violence and certain victims of sex or labor trafficking no longer qualify for SNAP

Food Pantries Brace for Impact

With cuts to SNAP, food pantries project an increase in patrons. Food access organizations across the state are preparing for the fallout. 

Stacy Dykstra, the chief executive officer of The Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, said they provided more than 70.7 million meals in 2024 and they anticipate an increase in demand as SNAP recipients lose access to benefits or see their monthly allotments shrink.

“I think all food pantries will see an uptick,” Dykstra said. “Even without these cuts, we are already in a perilous place. I am concerned about what it will look like when people lose even more of their food benefits.” 

Cole argued for the changes, stating that SNAP is not sustainable the way it is now. He said there will be a stricter process in meeting requirements; the bill will stop immigrants who do not have the correct documentation from getting aid, put an end to those who can work but are not, reduce error rates and save money.

Food providers warned that such assumptions overlook the reasons people rely on SNAP. Katy Leffel, the chief executive officer of Skyline Food Bank in Oklahoma City, said her organization has seen a 99% increase in unique clients served and a 117% increase in service deliveries to individuals from 2022 to 2024.

“We’re already stretched,” Leffel said. “We’re meant to be a supplemental gap filler; people come once every 30 days, and 70% of our patrons come just three times a year or less. They’re not abusing the system. They’re coming because they had a medical bill, popped a tire, or missed a shift because their kid was sick. This idea that people are freeloading just doesn’t hold up.”

The bill also includes language to ensure that people who have entered the U.S. illegally do not receive benefits, although undocumented residents did not qualify under the previous requirements. The United States Department of Agriculture has said that non-citizen immigrants are ineligible for SNAP. To apply for the program, applicants must submit personal documents, such as their Social Security card, which people who have entered the U.S. illegally do not possess. 

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities also released a statement on June 6, noting that people who lack documentation are already ineligible for benefits. The cuts would affect immigrants who lawfully live and work in the U.S., along with children of U.S. citizen immigrants. 

Parents with school-aged children, meaning seven or older, could see their SNAP benefits cut or terminated entirely.

SNAP provides food assistance to 1 of every 5 children in the U.S. It is estimated that more than 2 million children will be affected by the funding cuts. Students will also lose access to free school meals. Children whose parents are enrolled in SNAP automatically qualify for free school lunches, breakfasts and summer EBT, which stands for electronic benefits transfer..

“There’s tons of research that tells us nutrition is critical for health outcomes,” Dykstra said. “When people have consistent access to nutritious food, it reduces ER visits, saves the state money, and supports our economy. So investing in SNAP is actually investing in Oklahoma.”

According to data collected by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, food insecurity is harmful to a child’s health and, in turn, their education. The research showed that low-income children who don’t receive SNAP are more likely to be underweight, obese or in poor health. The CBPP collected information showing that children who have access to adequate food have better math and reading scores, fewer absences due to illness and increased chances of graduating. 

“The sad thing is that SNAP has been shown to be economically advantageous,” Leffel said. “For every dollar you invest, you get more back in the local economy. I think Oklahoma’s not alone in being a state that’s going to have a serious problem making up the funding difference.”

This article first appeared on Oklahoma Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Historic Cuts to SNAP Put 131,000 Oklahomans at Risk of Losing Benefits  appeared first on oklahomawatch.org

Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Left

The content primarily focuses on the negative impact of budget cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and other safety net programs, emphasizing the risks and hardships faced by affected Oklahoma residents, including children and seniors. It highlights concerns from food pantry leaders and cites research on the benefits of SNAP, which aligns with a viewpoint advocating for social welfare and government support for vulnerable populations. The inclusion of criticism towards the legislation and its potential consequences, while acknowledging some Republican perspectives, suggests a leaning towards a viewpoint that favors expanded social programs and protection for disadvantaged groups, characteristic of a center-left stance.

by Elizabeth Caldwell, Oklahoma Watch
July 23, 2025

The most important part of 28-year-old Brandon Hummel’s life was his two children, according to his mother.

“I know in my heart he’s probably not alive anymore because he never would’ve stayed away from those kids this long, or me,” Deana Floyd said.

Floyd left Hummel, a Choctaw citizen, and her other son at home for a trip out of town in January 2024. Hummel stayed in Atoka while his brother reported going to the movies in Ada. When the family returned, Hummel had vanished.

“Yeah, he made mistakes, but through it all, he loved them kids,” Floyd said. “He was just a down-to-earth guy. Even when he got in trouble with the police before, they all liked him. It wasn’t like he was a bad guy or anything, he just had some issues that he got in trouble for.”

Hummel had a track record of leaving home without a lot of communication, so Floyd didn’t contact authorities to report him missing until a month passed. What followed, she said, was a disorganized and lackluster performance from law enforcement resistant to cooperation.

The first organization involved in the search for Hummel was the Atoka County Sheriff. Floyd said the agency initially responded, but passed the case to Choctaw Lighthorse police without further involvement. That was something new, Floyd said, because the sheriff helped the family before.

“When [Brandon] was in his addiction, they didn’t have a problem coming out and arresting him and taking him to jail,” Floyd said. “He was in their jail before.”

Things changed in Oklahoma after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the McGirt case. That 2020 decision drastically altered the state’s legal landscape, finding much of the eastern portion to be reservation land. As a result, cases that the state would have previously handled were scheduled for tribal or federal courts.

“I think this law that they passed is ridiculous,” Floyd said. “They just want to shove everything over to the [Bureau of Indian Affairs] or the Lighthorse. If they’re Indian, they want nothing to do with it.”

Atoka County Sheriff Kody Simpson was elected last summer, defeating the incumbent after Hummel’s disappearance. Simpson said relations between his office and the Choctaw Nation have improved and it’s no longer policy that cases be sent without follow-up to the tribe.

“I hate to say this, but it’s the truth: in the municipal police and the county sheriff’s offices, it is a way to be lazy,” Simpson said. “It’s absolutely what it boils down to, 100%. They don’t want to deal with the call; they don’t want to deal with any call. The municipalities and the county sheriff’s offices that hand every call off, for tribal citizens, it is a way to be lazy.” 

Under the purview of the Lighthorse police, Hummel’s case languished, Floyd said. They weren’t interested in helping because of Hummel’s criminal record. In a written statement, Lighthorse police denied negligence, saying it “investigated and followed local leads diligently for a year before the remaining leads were identified to be individuals located out of the state.” 

Lighthorse eventually requested help from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the BIA. Floyd said the first BIA agent in charge left without an explanation. His replacement, who is based in Tennessee due to a staff shortage in Oklahoma, has been scarce.

The BIA did not respond to requests for information.

Advocates note similar breakdowns in procedures and relationships. The Northeastern Oklahoma Indigenous Safety & Education advocacy network creates reports for cases it handles. Last year, the group was involved in the search for Trey Glass, a 19-year-old United Keetoowah Band member found dead in a well belonging to a former Kansas, Oklahoma police chief.

In its report on Glass, NOISE noted a tangle of issues, including a delay before tribal authorities were notified of Glass’ disappearance by the family, not the police.

“Much of the confusion could have been delayed, and more resources could have been deployed if the Kansas PD had some foundational knowledge of operating a police department within the exterior boundaries of the Cherokee Nation Reservation,” the NOISE report stated.

The confusion was compounded by an intertribal dispute. Because Glass’ family is UKB, they chose to contact their tribe for help, but the UKB and the Cherokee Nation are at odds over a recent opinion that they legally share the same reservation. The initial search for Glass was a “cluster,” according to the report, as the UKB, the Cherokee Nation and the police tried to sort out who was in charge.

Chaos, apathy and uncooperative interagency behavior are not uncommon in missing or murdered Native cases such as Hummel’s and Glass’. That’s according to Karrisa Newkirk, president and founder of Missing Murdered Indigenous Women Oklahoma, who said it can be difficult to get law enforcement at any level across the state involved, even in violent emergencies.

“There’s been many domestic violence cases too,” Newkirk said. “So there’s been many times when someone has called because of a domestic violence incident and the city police are like, ‘Oh, you’re tribal? You’re going to have to call tribal police.’ Even though they’re in the city limits. And when you’re in a time of need, that’s not something you want to hear.”

Newkirk, who also collaborates with the Department of Justice, said responses improve if a cross-deputization agreement is in place, but the responsibility for contacting tribal police often still falls on the shoulders of victims, which breeds distrust and confusion. 

“I can’t tell you how many times I have been told, ‘Well, they said this, but I was so flustered in the moment, I didn’t do it. I called you,’” Newkirk said. 

Newkirk advocates for a range of solutions, including greater resources for the BIA, continued involvement of a responding officer and a standardized approach to police notifying tribes of arrests. 

“They probably don’t have a manual, but I really do think there needs to be some kind of workflow,” she said. “Like, ‘Oh, this is a tribal member. How many hours do we have to contact the tribal authority?’”

Newkirk also said agencies that work together should have biweekly check-ins, networking events and annual training.

“A lot of these small PDs don’t even have proper training in human trafficking, or missing children, or even murder cases,” Newkirk said. “It should not take 10 hours to issue an AMBER Alert when it meets all the criteria. Training is a necessity.”

In the meantime, Deana Floyd and other families with missing loved ones wait. 

“It’s a nightmare when you don’t know where your child is,” she said. “At this point, I don’t care about anything anymore, except for finding him.”

This article first appeared on Oklahoma Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post Missing, Murdered Native American Cases Delayed as Police Struggle to Work Together appeared first on oklahomawatch.org

Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Left

This content leans center-left as it highlights systemic issues related to law enforcement’s handling of missing Native American persons, emphasizing problems such as bureaucracy, interagency conflicts, and underfunding that disproportionately affect Indigenous communities. It advocates for increased accountability, better coordination, and expanded resources—positions commonly associated with center-left perspectives that focus on social justice and institutional reform without taking an extreme ideological stance.

SUMMARY: An Oklahoma man, 35, and a Christian University graduate, was reportedly killed in a militia attack in Syria while visiting his home country. Known as a community member for over a decade, he had earned a master’s degree and was deeply mourned by family and friends, including his father, uncles, brother, and cousin, all victims of violence. Fearful of retaliation, sources shared limited information. Oklahoma Senators James Lankford and Markwayne Mullin expressed heartbreak and are working with regional partners and the governor to gather information. Loved ones emphasize the need for greater attention to overseas conflicts, even affecting distant communities.

Oklahoman killed in apparent militia attack in Syria

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