Download or read book Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2013-04-23 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For many Americans who live at or below the poverty threshold, access to healthy foods at a reasonable price is a challenge that often places a strain on already limited resources and may compel them to make food choices that are contrary to current nutritional guidance. To help alleviate this problem, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) administers a number of nutrition assistance programs designed to improve access to healthy foods for low-income individuals and households. The largest of these programs is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly called the Food Stamp Program, which today serves more than 46 million Americans with a program cost in excess of $75 billion annually. The goals of SNAP include raising the level of nutrition among low-income households and maintaining adequate levels of nutrition by increasing the food purchasing power of low-income families. In response to questions about whether there are different ways to define the adequacy of SNAP allotments consistent with the program goals of improving food security and access to a healthy diet, USDA's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) asked the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to conduct a study to examine the feasibility of defining the adequacy of SNAP allotments, specifically: the feasibility of establishing an objective, evidence-based, science-driven definition of the adequacy of SNAP allotments consistent with the program goals of improving food security and access to a healthy diet, as well as other relevant dimensions of adequacy; and data and analyses needed to support an evidence-based assessment of the adequacy of SNAP allotments. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Examining the Evidence to Define Benefit Adequacy reviews the current evidence, including the peer-reviewed published literature and peer-reviewed government reports. Although not given equal weight with peer-reviewed publications, some non-peer-reviewed publications from nongovernmental organizations and stakeholder groups also were considered because they provided additional insight into the behavioral aspects of participation in nutrition assistance programs. In addition to its evidence review, the committee held a data gathering workshop that tapped a range of expertise relevant to its task.

Download or read book Food Stamp Program written by Lawrence J. Dyckman and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 2000-04 with total page 47 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Participation in the Food Stamp Program has dropped over the last few years. Because of concerns that states' efforts to reduce their welfare caseloads may have diminished eligible children's participation in the Food Stamp program, this report examines the reasons for the recent drop in Food Stamp participation, & any problems that households with eligible children have experienced in obtaining Food Stamp. This report analyzed the responses to a questionnaire sent to the 50 states & the D.C.; obtained data & reports on Food Stamp participation from the Food & Nutrition Service; & surveyed each of the Food & Nutrition Service's 7 offices, which oversee implementation of the Food Stamp program. Charts & tables.

Download or read book The Changing Food Assistance Landscape written by Craig Gundersen and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Food Stamp Reform written by American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research and published by . This book was released on 1977 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Food Stamp Program written by United States. General Accounting Office and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 2004 with total page 57 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Employment Factors Influencing Food Stamp Program Participation written by Signe-Mary McKernan and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Food stamp participation rates plummeted from 75 percent in 1994 to 59 percent in 2000 (Cunnyngham 2002, p. 3).1 In response to plummeting participation rates, and with the new flexibility brought about by the 1996 federal welfare reforms, many states are re-engineering their programs to improve accessibility (Rosenbaum 2000; Bell, et al. 2001). States are extending office hours, establishing automated call centers, and improving outreach, among other changes. But not all program changes are geared toward increasing participation rates. States have strong financial incentives to keep Food Stamp Program certification error rates low, a goal that often runs counter to improving participation rates. States are making policy decisions -- which have strong implications for Food Stamp Program participation decisions -- without the benefit of knowing the factors that make some eligible working persons choose to participate and others choose not to participate. This study will examine how low-income households' employment characteristics influence Food Stamp Program participation. The relationship between employment and Food Stamp Program (FSP) participation is of special interest for two reasons. First, characteristics of the food stamp caseload and the food stamp eligible population have changed to include more working low-income households. As Gleason et al. (2000) note, there has been a large increase in the proportion of food stamp participants with earnings. Among food stamp recipient families with children, the percentage working increased from 27 percent in 1993 to 42 percent in 1999 (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities 2001a, p. 1). Second, along with the declining participation rate has come a growing concern that eligible working low-income families are not participating in the Food Stamp Program. "Food stamps are crucial to helping low-wage working families make ends meet. A family of four supported by a full-time, year-round minimum wage worker will fall short of the poverty line by 25 percent (even after counting the earned income tax credit) if the family does not receive food stamps. Food stamps increase the typical monthly purchasing power of such a family by 39 percent" (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities 2001a, p. 4). Food stamp participation may reduce the chance that families are unable to financially meet basic needs and so use other forms of public assistance. It is important to understand how the Food Stamp Program works for the large fraction of the caseload that is employed, but it is even more important to understand why the Food Stamp Program does not work for low-income working persons who do not participate. The Food Stamp Program structure, with its numerous application rules, program requirements, and administrative practices, may be one reason that working low-income persons choose not to participate. As Besharov (2000) has argued, the Food Stamp Program was built around the non-working poor and the program for the working poor looks like an afterthought. Indeed, important aspects of the program do make participation difficult for the working low-income persons by effectively raising the monetary and nonmonetary costs of participation. For example, many individuals are required to appear in person at their local food stamp office to apply for food stamps and, in most cases, for periodic recertification. In-person application and recertification are more costly for the working low-income persons because the opportunity cost of their time is higher and they may have less available free time. It may be especially costly for people who work during traditional hours (for example, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) because they have a smaller time window to get to the food stamp office and may need to be absent from work to apply or be recertified for benefits. Certification policies provide another example of the increased cost of participation for the working low-income persons. In the late 1990s, many states shortened the certification period for households with a history of earned income to reduce the number of errors in the Food Stamp Program (Gabor and Botsko 2001).2 As a result, working food stamp recipients were required to return to the food stamp office for recertification even more often than non-working persons (Dion and Pavetti 2000). Furthermore, since food stamp benefits decline with income, working low-income persons face higher costs to participation for a smaller benefit amount. To provide an understanding of the relationship between employment and FSP participation, this analysis examines the employment characteristics and patterns of the working food stamp eligible population. In particular, we address three research questions: What are the detailed employment characteristics of low-income, working food stamp participating and non-participating households? Do household members work traditional hours? Are there multiple jobholders in the household? How many hours do household members work? Do they change jobs frequently? How do detailed measures of employment characteristics affect food stamp participation? Does labor force attachment affect participation? Are persons who work non-traditional hours more likely to participate? Does holding more than one job decrease the likelihood of participation? Does working more hours decrease the likelihood of participation? Do frequent job changes decrease the likelihood of participation? How has the relationship between employment factors and Food Stamp Program participation changed since federal welfare reform? Understanding the factors that affect participation decisions among working low-income individuals is necessary to ensure access to program benefits. Identifying these factors will shed light on how the Food Stamp Program is currently operating for the working low-income individuals and how it might be changed to better accommodate these individuals.

Download or read book Changes in Food Stamp Participation written by Nathan Young and published by . This book was released on 1991 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Decline in Food Stamp Program Participation in the 1990 s written by and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book California s Food Stamp Program Participation and Cost Challenges for the State written by and published by Public Policy Instit. of CA. This book was released on with total page 22 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Effects of Recent Changes in the Food Stamp Program on Participation and Food Consumption written by Deborah Susan Morentz and published by . This book was released on 1980 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Does SNAP Decrease Food Insecurity written by Mark Nord and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 2009 with total page 23 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Self-selection by more food-needy households into the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly called the Food Stamp Program) makes it difficult to observe positive effects of the program in survey data. This study investigates self-selection and ameliorative program effects by examining households¿ food security month by month for several months prior to initial receipt of SNAP benefits and for several months after joining the program. Food security is observed to deteriorate in the 6 months prior to beginning to receive SNAP benefits and to improve shortly after. The results clearly demonstrate the self-selection by households into SNAP at a time when they are more severely food insecure. Charts and tables.

Download or read book The Changing Food Assistance Landscape written by and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on with total page 31 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Thrifty Food Plan written by Betty B. Peterkin and published by . This book was released on 1975 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Human Resources Code written by Texas and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Food stamp program written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Agriculture and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 1176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Factors Related to Participation in the Food Stamp Program written by Fred K. Hines and published by . This book was released on 1975 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Food Stamp Program Profile written by United States. Congress. Senate. Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: