n a report published last year, the GAO found that chip-enabled cards are about 10 times more expensive to produce than magnetic strip ones. The initial transition alone can cost states millions of dollars upfront.
The USDA supports chip adoption, but it provides limited funds to help states do so. For instance, last year, the department awarded seven states a combined total of $5 million to address fraud.
Starting this month, states have fewer federal dollars to operate the food assistance program altogether. That's because of President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which cut federal funding for states' operational costs by half. At the same time, the law requires state SNAP agencies to focus on reducing their payment error rate — which is a measure of overpayments and underpayments to SNAP recipients — or they'll face harsh financial penalties…
https://www.npr.org/2026/10/14/nx-s1-5985198/snap-fraud-ebt-card-skimming-chip-cards
