Bill Summary: HB 693

Proposed Legislation Goes Beyond the Federal Impacts of H.R. 1

Overview/Background

In July 2025, the U.S Congress passed H.R. 1 — titled the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” — which included significant cuts to Medicaid financing, as well as changes to Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP) eligibility for certain immigrant populations. Additionally, H.R. 1 imposed new SNAP time limits on vulnerable people who are not working at least 20 hours a week, such as older participants and people with children aged 14 years or older in their home. H.R. 1 also shifted extensive costs from the federal government to states participating in SNAP by increasing each state’s share of administrative expenses and forcing states with SNAP error rates of 6 percent or higher to pay a percentage of the grocery benefits provided to eligible families.¹

Florida has proposed HB 693²to codify these federal laws; however, this bill goes beyond what is required in H.R. 1 by imposing new standards on Medicaid and SNAP eligibility that will cause undue harm to Florida’s families. These cuts will increase both food insecurity and the rate of children without health insurance in Florida, where roughly 8.5 percent of children currently lack health insurance³ and 1 in 7 Floridians face hunger.⁴

How HB 693 “Health and Human Resources,” Will Unnecessarily Restrict Children's Healthcare Eligibility

In 2016, the Florida Legislature voted to adopt a federal option that allows Medicaid and CHIP coverage for lawfully residing children under age 19, with no five-year waiting period.⁵ H.R. 1 preserves the state’s right to opt out of providing these services. At the same time, H.R. 1 newly limits the categories of non-citizens that states can cover in Medicaid and CHIP, with federal funds allocated to three categories: lawful permanent residents (after a five-year waiting period), Cuban/Haitian entrants, and CoFA residents.

Although the state has the option to keep these children covered under H.R. 1, HB 693 proposes to repeal the changes Florida implemented in 2016 to cover lawfully residing children and would instead limit non-citizen coverage for children to the three categories of immigrants listed in H.R. 1 for adults. Florida does not have to eliminate this five-year waiting period, and taking up this option would harm coverage and child well-being.

How HB 693 Will Unnecessarily Increase Food Insecurity

Florida imposes federal SNAP work requirements in two different ways on two different sets of SNAP participants: through its mandatory SNAP Employment and Training program (SNAP E&T), and through time limits on people called “Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents” (ABAWDs). H.R. 1 changed the federal law that governs ABAWDs to expand time limit work requirements to people up to age 65 and parents or other members of a household with responsibility for a dependent child 14 years of age or older, among others. However, H.R. 1 did not change the federal law that governs mandatory SNAP E&T work requirements.⁶

Still, HB 693 improperly attempts to impose mandatory SNAP E&T work requirements on people up to age 65, which is not required by H.R. 1. On the contrary, in SNAP E&T, participants aged 60 and older are exempt from E&T work requirements under federal law.⁷ In addition — although not required by H.R. 1 — the bill also imposes SNAP E&T work requirements on people with children 14 and older in their household, which is contradictory to how Florida has chosen to run its SNAP E&T program.⁸ Although HB 693 prefaces this expanded work requirement with the phrase, “[u]nless prohibited by the Federal Government,” the bill should be amended to accurately reflect not only federal law, but also state policies.

HB 693 also aims to reduce DCF’s error rate in the SNAP program by mandating that DCF develops and implements a food assistance payment accuracy improvement plan to reduce Florida’s SNAP error rates to below 6 percent by March 30, 2026. Many of the required components for the plan in the bill reflect a common-sense approach to lowering those rates (e.g., improved training and data sourcing). However, technological upgrades—which will require funding from lawmakers to address—will also be critical to reducing error rates.

In addition, HB 693 tightens verification of shelter and utility costs — which DCF says⁹ are a source of errors made in SNAP — by prohibiting self-attestation and instead requiring documentation. While HB 693 requires DCF to adopt policies to accommodate participants who are unable to furnish documentation of shelter or utilities because they have only recently moved to their new residence, the bill neglects to address other barriers that some participants may face that make it difficult for them to provide this documentation. Federal law requires that state agencies assist households in obtaining the required verification when requested, or when it appears necessary so long as the household is cooperating with the State agency.¹⁰ The bill should be amended to also reflect that duty.

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^[1] Cindy Huddleston , ”Bill Summary: H.R.1 (SNAP Provisions)“ September 10, 2025 https://www.floridapolicy.org/posts/bill-summary-hr-1-snap-provisions

^[2] HB 639, Florida House of Representatives https://www.flhouse.gov/Sections/Bills/billsdetail.aspx?BillId=83322&SessionId=113

^[3] U.S Census Bureau “Health Insurance Coverage by State: 2023 and 2024” https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/2025/demo/acsbr-024.pdf

^[4] Feeding America, “Get the facts about hunger in Florida,” https://www.feedingamerica.org/hunger-in-america/florida

^[5] Ch. 2016-65 House Bill No. 5101 ,Florida Statutes https://laws.flrules.org/2016/65

^[6] Under SNAP E&T requirements, mandatory participants and their families face losing their SNAP as a sanction if the participant does not work or take part in a qualifying E&T program for at least 120 hours a month Under SNAP time limit requirements, people up to age 65 can only get SNAP for 3 months in a three year period if they are not working an average of 20 hours per week. Department of Children and Families, “Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents and Mandatory Work Participants FAQ: What does it mean to be an ABAWD or mandatory work participants for food assistance?,” https://www.myflfamilies.com/services/public-assistance/abawd

^[7] USDA, ”SNAP Work Requirements,” https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/work-requirements#:~:text=SNAP%20has%20two%20sets%20of%20work%20requirements:,Work%20at%20least%2080%20hours%20a%20month.

^[8] Florida Department of Children and Families,” Able-Bodied Adults Without Dependents and Mandatory Work Participants FAQ: How do I know if I am an ABAWD or mandatory work participant who is subject to work requirements?,” 2026, https://www.myflfamilies.com/services/public-assistance/abawd.

^[9] Florida House of Representatives, “Human Services Subcommittee: Meeting Packet: ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL ACT:

CHANGES TO THE SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM,” October 8, 2025, https://www.flhouse.gov/Sections/Documents/loaddoc.aspx?MeetingId=14829&PublicationType=Committees&DocumentType=Meeting%20Packets.

^[10]7 C.F.R. § 273.2 (f)(5), https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-7/subtitle-B/chapter-II/subchapter-C/part-273/subpart-A/section-273.2#p-273.2%28c%29%285%29. See also Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “How to Streamline Verification of Eligibility for Medicaid and SNAP,” July 18, 2024, https://www.cbpp.org/research/health/how-to-streamline-verification-of-eligibility-for-medicaid-and-snap#_ftn21.