• Found only in the Senate Bill are eligibility restorations for legal immigrants who
• have been in the U.S. for 5 years
• are children (regardless of date of entry)
• are disabled (regardless of date of entry)
• have a work history in the U.S. of at least 4 years (compared to the 10 years required in current law)
• Found only in the Senate Bill is an extension of benefits to unemployed adults without children for 6 months in every 2 years (compared to the 3 months in every 3 years in current law)

• Standard Deduction: The House Bill raises the standard deduction for households of 4 or more people, but does not index this deduction to inflation so its effect would erode as the cost of living increases. The Senate Bill aligns the standard deduction to 10% of the current poverty level for all household sizes up to 6 (households of 7 or more people would receive a deduction of 10% of the FPL for a 6-person household). This will align this deduction to the cost of living, as the poverty level rises slightly each year.
• Shelter Deduction: Found only in the Senate Bill is an increase in the cap (beyond the scheduled increase) which restricts food stamp allotments for families that pay a large portion of their incomes for housing costs. The cap would eventually be lifted entirely.
• Standard Utility Allowance: Found only in the Senate Bill is a state option that would simplify the SUA and get more benefits to families. This option would allow states that require the SUA (as opposed to providing the option for actual utility costs) to be used in full
• for families who are doubled up with other people (currently the SUA is reduced by pro-ration)
• for families in public housing who have some utility costs beyond those covered by the housing authority (currently actual costs must be submitted and used)

• Transitional Benefits: Both Bills include a provision for a 6-month transitional benefit for families who leave welfare (TANF). However, only the Senate provision accounts for the loss of income that results from leaving TANF thereby assuring that families will receive a food stamp allotment in line with their actual need.
• Semi-Annual Reporting Option: Found only in the Senate Bill is an option to use semi-annual reporting for almost the entire caseload, rather than just for working households as is currently allowed.

The Senate Bill includes myriad of small changes that will make the Food Stamp Program easier for states to administer. These simplification measures include excluding child support payments from gross income and aligning the resource limit for disabled people to that for elderly people.