The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 authorized the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives projects to develop and test methods to increase the purchase and consumption of fluid milk of SNAP households by providing incentives at the point of purchase. The Act requires biennial reporting on the status of projects and completed evaluations. The findings for the FY 2020 award were presented in the first report to Congress. This second report presents findings from the FY 2021, FY 2022 and FY 2023 pilot projects.
The goal of this study was to pilot creating a WIC participant characteristics (PC) longitudinal data set with one WIC state agency. Eight state agencies with varying management information systems (MIS) platforms and high quality WIC PC 2020 data completed a survey about their MIS and longitudinal data provision capabilities. The survey assessed these state agencies’ MIS capabilities, as measured in six areas, to provide a longitudinal data set. This report describes the process of working with one WIC state agency to create a pilot WIC PC longitudinal data set of infant and child participants and the challenges and successes of this effort.
This study examines the use of robotic process automation technologies by three state agencies—Georgia, New Mexico, and Connecticut—to administer SNAP.
This report presents findings from the evaluation of the first Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives project. The project tested take-up of incentives delivered through coupons issued to SNAP participants when they purchased "qualifying fluid milk" with their SNAP benefits at four pilot stores in west Texas.
States may establish their own standard utility allowances. The use of SUAs, including heating and cooling SUAs for households with heating and cooling expenses, simplifies the application process for both the applicant and the state agency. The primary objectives of this study were to conduct a review of available data to determine typical costs for internet access to develop a broadband standard utility allowance; and estimate new fiscal year 2022 HCSUA values for each state.
These graphics, the latest in a series of annual reports on WIC eligibility, present 2020 national and state estimates of the number of people eligible for WIC benefits and the percentages of the eligible population and the US population covered by the program, including estimates by participant category.
The WIC Food Cost-Containment Practices Study describes the voluntarily approaches state agencies used in 2018 to reduce food costs when selecting and authorizing WIC foods. This study is the second of its kind; the first was conducted by the USDA Economic Research Service in 2003. This report examines how six types of food cost-containment practices are associated with food costs and WIC participant satisfaction, benefit redemption, and food consumption in 12 state agencies.
Section 4022 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 authorized and funded the SNAP employment and training pilots and the evaluation. The final summary report presents findings drawn from the 10 pilot-specific final evaluation reports. The pilot-specific final reports and issue briefs on lessons from the pilots on administering and delivering services in SNAP E&T programs are also available.
FNS has historically estimated the participation rate of SNAP by using Census data and samples of SNAP administrative data, but modeling SNAP eligibility using survey data has a number of challenges. In response, FNS, the Economic Research Service, and the Census Bureau sought potential solutions to these issues by linking Census survey data with monthly administrative records at the person level.
This Community Eligibility Provision Characteristics study is the first comprehensive study since CEP became available nationwide in SY 2014-15. The study was designed to provide USDA with information about the impact of CEP and includes both an implementation and impact component.