State unveils system to reduce SNAP error rates

Gov. Josh Shapiro and his team have launched a suite of new and improved technology and tools to support the commonwealth’s administration and management of public assistance programs and improve customer experience.

Driven in part by new federal requirements to lower the state’s SNAP error rate, the new tools will also allow state residents to track their benefits applications in real-time and save millions in taxpayer dollars and thousands of hours in staff overtime.

State Human Services Department and CODE PA officials have piloted the new tools for the last two months, demonstrating positive results that have saved hundreds of hours of staff and helped caseworkers catch and resolve common errors. During the pilot, the use of intelligent document processing cut down on the number of illegible documents submitted by 80%, saving 700 hours of staff time. Likewise, the new SNAP case checker helped staff prioritize more than 1,000 cases for additional review, helping reduce the risk of additional SNAP case errors.

The launch of these new tools will modernize applications and benefits management and improve both staff and client experience, and will blunt the harmful impacts of the Republican Budget Bill that President Trump signed into law last July. Immediately after the Republican Budget Bill was signed into law, the Department of Human Services began working with the Commonwealth Office of Digital Experience (CODE PA) to develop tools to address the unfunded federal mandates included in the legislation.

“Staff at DHS’ County Assistance Offices work tirelessly every day to help Pennsylvanians in difficult situations access assistance that can help weather a crisis or take a step forward. This work requires constant attention to detail and focus on accuracy to make proper eligibility determinations – often under pressure from people who do not understand the care and diligence this team brings to their work,” said Dr. Val Arkoosh, state human services secretary. “These new resources will help both our staff and our clients as they navigate the complex eligibility process – continuing our constant focus on improving customer service and supporting efficiency and accuracy as our staff and our clients face new pressures and potential barriers to these essential, life-sustaining supports.”

Part of the overhaul of the new public assistance program management system is the SNAP Case Checker. Supervisors within DHS’ Office of Income Maintenance Operations team, who process and oversee eligibility determinations when a person applies for or renews their benefits, now receive daily reports flagging common potential case errors like missing signatures or calculations of wages and deductions before a case is submitted for quality control reviews. This allows caseworkers to identify and correct potential issues with a case record sooner, furthering Pennsylvania’s continued work to reduce its SNAP case processing error rate. A pilot of this case tracker helped staff prioritize more than 1,000 cases for additional review, helping reduce the risk of additional SNAP case errors.

The state’s SNAP payment error rate became an issue earlier this year when Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (HR 1). The law says states that have SNAP payment error rates of more than 10% will be charged part of the cost of SNAP benefits.

According to a state Independent Fiscal Office analysis over the summer, the federal government would charge Pennsylvania about $645 million a year starting in 2027-28 if its error rate remains the same. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), SNAP payment error rates measure how accurately the state determines household eligibility and benefit amounts. The payment error rates include both overpayments and underpayments to households.

Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Bellafonte, sent a letter to Gov. Josh Shapiro earlier this year about the state’s error rate after the state’s Department of Human Services responded to questions from the Altoona Mirror and said SNAP payment errors aren’t a sign of fraud but instead are minor paperwork errors. Thompson said in his letter to Shapiro that in 2022, the state Department of Human Services increased the income threshold to 200 percent of Federal Poverty Income Guidelines, creating a new benefit for more than 420,000 Pennsylvanians and then, two years later, paid more than $450 million in SNAP benefits incorrectly, a combination of both overpayments and underpayments.

“If your administration cannot make improvements in program administration that have been possible in the past, I suggest that you re-examine budget priorities and further invest in SNAP. Congress can no longer turn a blind eye to states diverting taxpayer funding from vulnerable families, and you have an opportunity to be a part of this solution,” Thompson said.

The state’s response includes the following:

My Benefits Status Tracker: A new tool that will show applicants and clients where their application is in real-time. Users will be able to check their status anytime without needing to log into their COMPASS account. Users will verify their identity using simpler methods that remain secure. The initial launch will allow users to track new applications and will be expanded to include renewals. The tracker is accessible at trackmybenefits.pa.gov.

Intelligent Document Processing: Documents will be scanned for legibility when users upload required documentation to COMPASS to verify information in their application or renewal. This AI-driven tool will screen for blurriness, image quality, and relevance to assist users in submitting accurate and readable information and help caseworkers quickly process information, cutting time spent trying to decipher poor scans or time spent working with clients to resubmit. The tool will not determine eligibility but will support DHS staff and improve accuracy and efficiency in case processing. Approximately 12,000 documents have been scanned through this tool’s pilot period, identifying concerns in 25% of cases. These flags allow clients to resubmit unclear scans of necessary documents immediately, decreasing instances of illegible or incorrect documents by 80 percent and saving CAO staff more than 700 hours of work.

Consent-Based Income Verification: Clients applying for or renewing DHS benefits will be able to opt-in to allow DHS to verify income data directly with a person’s listed employer(s). This adds yet another tool for DHS to verify income. Caseworkers will receive income information from employers and payroll processors directly to verify an applicant’s information, reducing delays created by missing, incomplete, or unclear documentation and improving accuracy and efficiency in case processing. This feature is supported by a federal grant.

Self -service Password Reset: Pennsylvanians can now reset their passwords directly through COMPASS without a caseworker’s assistance, improving prior processes which required an actual staff member’s time and attention to authorize resets. This added convenience for COMPASS users will mean Pennsylvanians get answers faster because caseworkers will spend less time on the phone resetting passwords and more time processing benefits.

“We are leveraging modern technology, including AI, to improve access to benefits that are a vital lifeline to millions of Pennsylvanians and empower caseworkers with tools to do their jobs more effectively,” said Secretary of Administration Neil Weaver. “This project exemplifies the Shapiro Administration’s no-wrong-door approach to delivering effective, efficient services to Pennsylvanians.”