Proposed Rule: SNAP Standardization of State Heating and Cooling Standard Utility Allowances

The proposed rule would revise Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) regulations to standardize the methodology for calculating standard utility allowances (SUAs or standards).

The new methodology would set the largest standard, the heating and cooling standard utility allowance (HCSUA), at the 80th percentile of low-income households’ utility costs in the state. Standard allowances for other utility costs would subsequently be capped at a percentage of the HCSUA with the exception of an updated telecommunications SUA that would be a standard amount set nationally.

These figures would continue to be updated annually and reflective of utility costs in each state.

Additional Resources:

• Regulatory Reform at a Glance: Modernizing the State Heat and Cooling Standard Utility Allowances
• FY 2017 HCSUA Values and Proposed Rule Impacts
• FY 2019 Heating and Cooling Standard Utility Allowances