This report responds to PL 105-379, which mandated the USDA  examine options for the design, development, implementation and operation of a national database to track participation in federal means-tested public assistance programs.

This pamphlet provides estimates for Food Stamp Program participation rates by states. It will be the first widely-released document showing the percentage of eligible people, by state, who actually participate in the program. Because the data are from January 1994, prior to the enactment of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, they provide baseline data on participation rates prior to the enactment of welfare reform.