[Excerpt]

State officials estimate 27,000 people lost their SNAP benefits for food stamps on May 1 due to new work or volunteer requirements, and churches and non-profits are rushing to help people get food or obtain food stamps….

“It’s like our churches are the first stop of the social safety net. Children’s directors, Sunday school teachers, they’re being asked, ‘where do I go get insurance right now? How do I fill out this paperwork? Where do I go for a pantry? They’re becoming the navigators of a system that doesn’t feel like it’s very deep right now, so we’ve been working really hard on sharing information across congregations,” said Rae Lathrop, director of Justice and Community Development for the Desert Southwest Conference of the United Methodist Church. Lathrop also represents organization Nevadans For the Common Good. 

The mandates for SNAP recipients also place a burden on limited church staff to research and complete appropriate paperwork for people to get benefits, Lathrop said.

“We’ve been trying to figure out how to fill out the paperwork for individuals. The reality is accommodating for 20 hours a week of volunteer service is really difficult. A small congregation may only have the ability to have one or two volunteers at 20 hours a week,” she said....

Community organizations and churches are working through employment and volunteer requirements in preparation for next year: an estimated 147,000 Nevadans could be impacted by various HR1 changes and requirements, which include work and community service mandates to qualify for Medicaid.

Thousands of Nevadans Lose SNAP Benefits from new Federal Mandates, MSN [pdf]