An elderly woman approaching 85 years of age said she is now going to be forced to find a new job after the state overpaid her roughly $9,000 in food stamps, and will now be offsetting her Social Security benefits.
Local Houston station ABC 13 said Jerralee King received $9,000 in extra SNAP benefits over several years and now owes the government the money back, despite the mistake being made on their part.
“Hopefully they’ll be hiring old ladies at that point,” King told 13 Investigates.
Why It Matters
While not relatively uncommon, overpayments by the government can cause Americans to owe thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars, causing their Social Security and other benefits to come to a near, if not total, standstill.
The national SNAP payment error rate (which includes both overpayments and underpayments) was around 11 percent, according to the LegalClarity organization. However, the vast majority of errors are overpayments, not underpayments.
While SNAP overpayment cannot reverse or cancel Social Security, Social Security checks can be partially offset to repay a delinquent SNAP debt under federal debt‑collection rules.
What To Know
King originally applied for SNAP in 2021, and for three-and-a-half years, she received anywhere between $112 and $348 per month.
“It made a big difference. It sure did. I didn’t have to worry. I knew that I had enough to sustain me,” King said.
However, King stopped earning the benefits last March without knowing why. Several months later, she got a letter saying she was never eligible for the payments to begin with and now owed the state of Texas the full $8,927 due to their error in approving benefits.
“The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) has determined your household was overpaid SNAP benefits. The overpayment occurred as a result of AGENCY Error,” the Notice of SNAP Overpayment Claim read on July 21, 2025. “The Agency failed to input the correct resource amount causing the household to receive SNAP benefits they were not eligible for.”
King didn’t realize the letter was actually from the state at first, but is now trying to figure out how she will pay back the benefit money she received.
“I began to tell other people about it. Have you ever heard of such a thing? And they just looked at me like I’d lost my mind,” King said. “Then I realized, no, they really want their money back. Good luck.”
Under federal law, beneficiaries must pay back their overpayments, even if the error wasn’t on their part.
In President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” states are now required to lower their overall error rate to 6 percent or less for SNAP benefits by 2028 or face funding shortages, but it’s still relatively common for mistakes to occur.
“HHSC has implemented targeted case reviews, enhanced staff training, technology-based quality checks and clearer policy guidance to reduce errors and ensure families receive the correct benefit amount. These efforts help prevent mistakes before benefits are issued,” The Texas Health and Human Services Commission said in a statement to ABC 13.
Because of the nearly $9,000 King is being forced to pay back, the U.S. Department of the Treasury also notified her that up to 15 percent of her Social Security benefits will be garnished monthly until the debt is repaid. That equates to around $200 less in King’s Social Security benefits each month.
What People Are Saying
Michael Ryan, a finance expert and the founder of MichaelRyanMoney.com, told Newsweek: “Is this common? More than Americans realize. The national SNAP overpayment rate was over 9% in FY2024. That means hundreds of thousands of cases annually involve incorrect payments. States overpay far more often than they underpay, and recipients have no warning in the application that agency errors can be clawed back from them.”
What Happens Next
Ryan said everyone receiving SNAP should monitor their balance monthly for any unusual spikes to prevent an overpayment notice, as King experienced.
“If benefits jump without explanation, call immediately,” Ryan said. “Request a fair hearing within 90 days of any overpayment notice. You can often negotiate a repayment plan or challenge the amount.”