Iowa lawmakers have passed a measure that makes it harder to qualify for nutrition assistance programs, and tightens residency requirements for immigrants who need help.
The measure comes as federal Medicaid requirements have already reduced funding for social service programs, including SNAP.
Senate File 2422 would expand the number of public assistance programs, but Common Good Iowa Executive Director Anne Discher said it would also add a 12-month residency requirement to qualify.
"So in other words, if you were applying for SNAP, WIC, TANF – which in Iowa is known as the Family Investment Program, Medicaid, or childcare assistance," said Discher, "the state would be allowed to ask you to provide paperwork to prove how long you've been in Iowa, and to ask you about the reasons that you're in the state."
SF 2422 is the latest in a series of bills that could be deemed anti-immigrant in Iowa. It follows moves by Gov. Kim Reynolds to tighten voter identification rules, require mandatory E-Verify for employees, and tighten identification rules for people receiving state benefits.
On the heels of tighter Medicaid requirements and hospital reimbursement rates set forth in the Trump administration's 2025 budget bill, Iowa Senate File 2422 would also tighten eligibility for the Women, Infants, and Children nutrition program – which Discher said has always been a mainstay of support for new families who need help, until now.
"They've never asked for anyone to show citizenship documentation," said Discher, "because it's just such a basic public health idea that babies need formula and little kids need good nutrition and pregnant women need good nutrition."
Iowa is among a handful of states Discher said is eroding basic safety net programs, adding they began working on tightening social service eligibility restrictions before the Trump administration laid out similar changes in the federal budget bill.