Here's a good article that explains the Food Stamp situation and how states are trying the cuts.
The article explains how each state is reacting to the cuts, but I wanted to use the four paragraphs allowed to give a generic explanation of the issue. Here's the article:
SNIP
The seven states and D.C. have been able to thwart Congress because the cuts only affect those states using the so-called "Heat and Eat" provision of the food stamps program. Under "Heat and Eat," a household is entitled to more food aid if it is enrolled in the federally-funded Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which helps people pay their utility bills. Each state gets a specific amount of federal money to run LIHEAP as it sees fit.
Under the old version of "Heat and Eat," it didn't matter how much LIHEAP help a family got—only that they got it. So to maximize food stamp aid, some states were signing up food stamp recipients for LIHEAP, and then giving them a nominal payment of as little as $1 per year.
To close the "loophole," as many called it, Congress changed the law. Under the new rules, food stamp recipients have to receive at least $20 each year in utility assistance to qualify for more food aid. The change was projected to cut benefits by about $90 per month for the 850,000 households affected. The average monthly benefit per household for all 50 states and the District of Columbia in fiscal year 2013 was $275.
The states strike back
But in response to the change, states have simply boosted LIHEAP funding to meet the new threshold. In most cases, they have been able to do so without using state dollars, though some states may be forced to dip into their own money if they exhaust their annual LIHEAP grants. States have varying amounts of leftover LIHEAP money, depending on how many of their residents were enrolled in the program during the year, the cost of energy and the severity of the weather.
continued at link:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/17/stateline-food-stamps/6538141/