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 in an average month in fiscal year 2004 and in the two previous years. This report also presents estimates of state participation rates for eligible “working poor” individuals (persons in households with earnings) over the same period.
This report provides information about the demographic and economic circumstances of food stamp households in fiscal year 2005. 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 October 2004 and September 2005.
The purpose of this report is to illustrate the types and amounts of foods being prescribed within the WIC food package for each category of participants. This report does not provide information on redemption of the food prescriptions, or on actual food consumption; at this time, comprehensive data are available only on food prescriptions.
Recently, the method used to calculate the number of individuals eligible for the WIC program was evaluated and an improved methodology was developed.
The WIC Participant and Program Characteristics (PC 2004) report summarizes demographic characteristics of WIC participants nationwide in April 2004, along with information on participant income and nutrition risk characteristics. A national estimate of breastfeeding initiation for WIC infants is included. The report also describes WIC members of migrant farm-worker families.
Since 1992, FNA has produced biennial reports on WIC participant and program characteristics based on the WIC Minimum Data Set compiled from state management information systems. The 20 items included in the MDS are collected as part of ongoing WIC operations and consist primarily of in formation related to participant eligibility.
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 Administration to study the decline in participation in the Food Stamp Program.
This is the third report in a series of publications presenting estimates of the percentage of eligible persons, by state, who participate in the Food Stamp Program. This issue presents food stamp participation rates for states in September 1998 and the change between September 1994 and September 1998. This information can be used to assess recent trends in program performance and focus efforts for improvement.