Tue, Oct 13th 2026 09:40 pm
New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance press release
The New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) announced $26.4 million for enhanced outreach projected to help more than 340,000 New Yorkers with seeking, obtaining and maintaining food assistance, including via the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and/or other nutrition assistance programming across New York, through provision of information, application support, and more. The “Nutrition Navigators” program will replace and expand existing outreach efforts that help New Yorkers learn more about, apply for and receive assistance from SNAP, including help navigating the expanded SNAP work requirements enacted and imposed by under H.R.1.
Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance Commissioner Barbara C. Guinn said, “The ‘Nutrition Navigators’ program will strengthen our ongoing efforts to connect more lower-income New Yorkers to SNAP and other essential food assistance programs, especially in underserved areas of the state.”
The “Nutrition Navigators” program will provide direct outreach to individuals seeking food assistance across New York, including SNAP prescreening, application assistance, information about SNAP, and support in meeting the expanded work requirements signed into law by President Donald Trump. Participating providers will develop and implement innovative ways to connect potentially eligible individuals with SNAP benefits and other nutrition programs – including WIC, summer EBT, the national school lunch program, and others – with the goal of helping New Yorkers make informed decisions about whether to apply for SNAP and/or other available programs, and supporting them with navigating the application processes.
Overseen by OTDA, the “Nutrition Navigators” program combines and builds upon the services that had previously been provided by the nutrition outreach and education program and targeted SNAP outreach program, both of which ended Sept. 30.
In July 2025, Trump signed H.R.1 into law, which expanded SNAP work requirements. Since then, OTDA has worked proactively to provide updates and information to help as many New Yorkers remain connected to SNAP and keep their benefits as possible. This includes:
•Directing local social services districts to notify and assist SNAP recipients in complying with the requirements, by connecting them with job opportunities, facilitating their job search, and/or helping them find volunteer opportunities with locally based provider organizations – going beyond the federal requirements to offer New Yorkers support in maintaining their benefits.
•Developing client-facing resources and a range of tools to assist SNAP recipients with documenting their participation, and conducting direct, repeated and ongoing outreach to recipients, including across multiple channels, to let them know about the new requirements, explain the steps they need to take, how to comply, where to get help, and point them to the tools they can use as they do so.
•Collaborating closely with local social services districts to provide training and guidance to help them administer these federal changes and support local SNAP applicants and recipients. Also, sharing outreach materials with local districts, advocates, community-based organizations, state agencies, other partners statewide, to help push out clear and consistent information about the rules and how recipients can keep their benefits.
OTDA remains focused on continuing to support local districts and clients throughout implementation to ensure as many households as possible remain connected to vital SNAP benefits that help them afford food.
The new “Nutrition Navigators” program includes increased state and local funding to maintain and enhance SNAP public outreach to offset the reduction, effective Oct. 1, in federal reimbursement for SNAP administrative costs, including outreach, from 50% to 25%, as part of the federal H.R. 1 bill.
In addition, the new “Nutrition Navigators” program includes $4.4 million in funding for Hunger Solutions New York to provide statewide technical assistance and guidance to support the local services providers with training, research, program evaluation, and development of outreach initiatives. Hunger Solutions will also help ensure federal regulations and state requirements are met and conduct a needs assessment to help OTDA identify underserved areas and improve statewide SNAP outreach.
In-person and virtual support will be available in every county, provided through 44 community-based direct services providers. Twelve counties will have virtual support services, which will be provided by Hunger Solutions. The local organizations awarded funding, the amount they received, and the counties they serve include:
FeedMore Western New York Inc.; $223,202; Erie, Niagara, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus
Jericho Road Ministries Inc.; $268,786; Erie
Journey’s End Refugee Services; $152,178; Erie, Broome, Tompkins, Chautauqua
Network of Religious Communities Inc.; $288,166; Erie, Genesee, Wyoming, Niagara
