Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The United States’ leading food-assistance program has expanded by nearly 75% over the past four years, demonstrating the crippling effect of the Great Recession on a large segment of American society.
Today, there are almost 46 million people on food stamps, or about 15% of the U.S. population.
And that total would be even higher if many Americans who are eligible for the program applied for assistance. Federal officials estimate that one in three who meet the criteria have not tried to get food stamps.
Despite the common assumption that all food stamp recipients are poor or unemployed, the fact is that approximately 40% of them live in households with at least one employed member.
Because of the enormous jump in total recipients, the program now costs Washington $68 billion a year. Some Republicans, determined to shrink the size of the federal budget, want to cut funding for food stamps, even though such a move could cause millions to lose their assistance.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
USA Becomes Food Stamp Nation but Is It Sustainable? (by Kristina Cooke, Reuters)
JPMorgan Profits When Food Stamp Use Increases (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
Food Stamp Use by Military Families on the Rise (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
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