NW Illinois News

Illinois State Representative Tony McCombie has raised concerns about the management of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) under Governor JB Pritzker. According to McCombie, Illinois’ SNAP payment error rate reached 11.56% in 2024, which is above the federal threshold of 6% that triggers financial penalties under the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB). In comparison, Illinois' error rate was 5.73% in 2017, before Pritzker took office.

The OBBB requires states with high error rates to cover a portion of SNAP costs previously paid by the federal government. For Illinois, this could mean paying up to $800 million annually unless improvements are made in program accuracy.

McCombie highlighted that other states have managed their programs more effectively. She referenced an analysis by columnist Rich Miller showing that 38 states had lower error rates than Illinois. If Illinois matched neighboring states like Michigan, Ohio, or Texas—each with error rates just below 10%—the state's liability would decrease to $470 million. Returning to Illinois’ own 15-year average of a 7.1% error rate would further reduce penalties to $235 million.

"Every wasted dollar is one that doesn’t reach families who truly need help putting food on the table," McCombie said. "Instead of playing politics, Governor Pritzker should focus on fixing his agencies and bringing accountability back to SNAP. If he doesn’t, it won’t be Washington that pays the price, it will be Illinois taxpayers."

McCombie also criticized Governor Pritzker for allowing $5.2 billion in fraudulent unemployment claims during the pandemic and called for improved oversight within state agencies.

McCombie was elected as a Republican representative for Illinois' 89th House District in 2023, succeeding Andrew Chesney (https://www.ilga.gov/house/Rep.asp?GA=103&MemberID=3209).

###