Federal work requirements for food assistance kicked back in this week for certain Michigan residents in eight counties and one city, meaning thousands of able-bodied adults now have to log work or training hours to keep receiving help buying groceries. The change took effect Nov. 1 in Alger, Arenac, Iosco, Iron, Luce, Montmorency, Oceana and Roscommon counties, plus Bay City.
The newly covered areas had previously held a federal waiver tied to local unemployment levels, but that exemption has lapsed, according to Detroit Free Press. The rules apply specifically to able-bodied adults ages 18 to 64 who don't have dependents under 14 living with them, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Administration notified the state about the updated requirements.
What Recipients Now Have to Do
Qualifying adults must work or volunteer a certain number of hours each month to stay enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Specifically, recipients may meet the requirement by working at least 80 hours a month, participating in an approved employment and training program for 80 hours monthly, or volunteering for hours calculated by dividing the household's monthly food assistance benefit by Michigan's minimum wage, according to mlive.com.
Not everyone affected by the change has to meet those hours, though. Some recipients are exempt from the work requirements altogether, including people who are physically or mentally unable to work and people who are pregnant, per the same report. Able-bodied adults without dependents under 14 can also receive benefits for up to three months within a three-year period without meeting the work rules before losing eligibility.
Why Some Areas Still Have a Waiver
The federal government can temporarily waive the work requirements in areas where the unemployment rate tops 10%, per Michigan's Department of Health and Human Services. Seven counties and five cities still carry that exemption: Alcona, Cheboygan, Mackinac, Ogemaw, Oscoda, Presque Isle and Schoolcraft counties, along with Detroit, Eastpointe, Flint, Jackson and Saginaw, according to the mlive report. USDA's Food and Nutrition Administration confirms that states may request such a waiver for residents living in areas with unemployment above that 10% threshold, per the agency's own guidance.
The waiver landscape has shifted over the past year. Back in December 2025, WNEM reported that Arenac, Iosco, Ogemaw, Oscoda and Roscommon counties, along with Bay City, Flint and Saginaw, were all exempt from the work requirements at that time. Several of those same counties and Bay City are now among the areas where the rules have resumed, while Flint and Saginaw remain on the exempt list.
A separate Nov. 2 report from Upper Michigan's Source covered the same reinstatement for three Upper Peninsula counties — Alger, Iron and Luce.
Part of a Broader Federal Overhaul
The stricter SNAP work requirements stem from President Donald Trump's H.R. 1, which he has called his “one big beautiful bill,” and which was signed into law on July 4, 2025, after the June 2025 comparison point used in enrollment data. MDHHS acting director Amy Epkey addressed the rollout directly, saying, “Our priority is ensuring that participants understand what these changes mean and where to find help,” according to the mlive report.
Statewide enrollment figures tell a mixed story, depending on which time frame is measured. One count found that 167,166 people, including 56,417 children, fell off Michigan's SNAP rolls between August 2025 and September 2026 — a 12% drop in participation since June 2025, per mlive's reporting. A separate analysis from the Citizens Research Council of Michigan found the state's SNAP population declined from 1,474,701 people in June 2025 to 1,370,616 by April 2026, roughly an 8% decrease; the two figures cover different periods and shouldn't be compared directly.
Nationally, the research council's analysis also found SNAP enrollment fell from 42 million people in June 2025 to 37 million by April 2026, while monthly benefits dropped from $7.8 billion to $6.9 billion over that same stretch, according to the Citizens Research Council of Michigan. Nearly 13% of Michigan households — about 1.4 million people — currently receive SNAP benefits, per Upper Michigan's Source. The program is intended to help tens of millions of low-income Americans afford nutritious food, and for residents in the eight counties and Bay City now subject to the restored rules, the coming months will test how smoothly that safety net adjusts to the new requirements.
