This report provides a comprehensive picture of individuals’ patterns of participation in the Food Stamp Program during 2001-2003, a period of steady caseload growth. Based on data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation, the research explores reasons that individuals enter and leave the FSP, how long they stay on the program, whether they return to the program after exiting, and what factors distinguish those who make greater use of the FSP than others. The research also examines whether participation patterns in 2001-2003 changed from patterns in the 1990s.

This report – the latest in an annual series – presents estimates of the percentage of eligible persons, by state, who participated in the Food Stamp Program (FSP) in an average month in fiscal year 2005 and in the 2 previous fiscal years. This report also presents estimates of state participation rates for eligible “working poor” individuals (persons in households with earnings) over the same period. 

The report draws on data for households participating in the Food Stamp Program under normal rules and thus does not include information about those who received disaster assistance after the Gulf Coast hurricanes in September and October 2005. 

This report is the latest in a series on food stamp participation rates based on the March Current Population Survey, and presents national participation rates for fiscal year 2005.

Because of concerns about poor diet, overweight, and obesity among low-income Americans, there is considerable interest in using federal nutrition assistance programs to promote healthy choices. Some argue that food stamp recipients should be prohibited from using their benefits to buy foods with limited nutritional value (commonly described as “junk” foods). The Food Stamp Act currently places few limits on the use of food stamp benefits, as long as they are used to buy food to eat at home. The idea of restricting the use of food stamp benefits may be appealing on its face. However, upon closer examination, serious concerns emerge regarding the feasibility and rationale for the proposed restriction.

This is the final report for the project, "Analysis of the Current Population Survey Data for Food Security and Hunger Measurement" conducted by Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. 

This report presents the characteristics of food stamp households nationwide in fiscal year 2000 (October 1999 to September 2000). This information on household characteristics comes from FSP household data for fiscal year 2000 collected by FNS for quality control purposes. 

This report examines trends in FSP participation rates since 1994. It focuses on trends in the rates before and after welfare reform, and throughout much of the economic expansion of the 1990s. It also examines trends in participation rates among subgroups of the eligible population such as those with and without earnings, with and without children, and with and without welfare. It also looks at participation rates of aliens and able-bodied adults without children.

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 imposed a work requirement and time limit on food stamp recipients viewed as fit to work – able-bodied adults without dependents. ABAWD participants are limited to three months of benefits in a three-year period unless they meet a work requirement. This study provides a national picture of how states implemented the ABAWD provisions and who was affected.

Over the last decade, food stamp participation rose more sharply than expected following the relatively short and mild recession in the early 1990s and fell more sharply than expected after 1994 during the sustained period of economic growth. Report language accompanying the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2001 directed the Food and Nutrition Service to study the decline in participation in the Food Stamp Program.