Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg asks federal officials to restore SNAP benefits for more than 10,000 Jefferson County residents

Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg on Monday called on federal officials to restore Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits that he said were taken away from more than 10,000 people in Jefferson County after changes federal agencies implemented in 2025.

Speaking during an Aug. 10, 2026 news conference, Greenberg said the impact has reached families across the county, leaving residents to cope with reduced assistance for food at a time when household budgets are already strained. He urged the federal government to revisit the change and reinstate benefits for those who lost them.

Greenberg’s remarks focused on the effect of federal policy decisions on local households, describing the SNAP losses as a county-level problem with real consequences for residents who rely on the program to meet basic needs. He said the affected population is large enough that the issue is likely to ripple into local service systems, community organizations, and household spending.

The mayor’s statement did not describe specific operational details of the federal change, including how eligibility determinations were adjusted or what notice and appeal processes were used. It also did not specify which federal agency or program rule was responsible for the 2025 loss of benefits.

According to WAVE, Greenberg said benefits should be restored to the residents who lost them and called for federal action to correct what he characterized as the broader impact of the federal changes. The mayor’s comments were made as Kentucky communities continue to navigate the downstream effects of federal benefit administration.

Federal SNAP eligibility and benefit calculations involve rules administered through state agencies, with oversight at the federal level. In practice, changes to federal requirements or administrative procedures can produce immediate county-level effects, including benefit reductions or terminations following re-determinations. The next step, based on Greenberg’s request, would be for federal officials to respond to the appeal to restore benefits for the affected Jefferson County residents.

It was not immediately clear what timeline federal officials would follow in response to the mayor’s request, or what criteria would be used to identify which recipients should be reinstated. Greenberg’s call, as described by WAVE, centers on the need for federal agencies to reverse last year’s decision impacting more than 10,000 local residents.