The U.S. Department of Agriculture is reporting that the number of participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) declined from August 2020 to August 2021, despite significant increases in spending on benefits.
SNAP is a federal system that provides nutrition benefits to low-income individuals and families that can be used at stores to purchase food. The program is administered by the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) through its nationwide network of FNS field offices. Local FNS offices are responsible for the licensing and monitoring of retail food stores participating in SNAP.
Data from the USDA show that participation in the program has been dropping slightly. According to USDA's metrics for SNAP from August 2020 to August 2021, the number of people participating decreased slightly from 42.5 million to 41.7 million, a fall of 1.9% and the number of households participating decreased from 22.4 million to 22 million, a drop of 2.1%. Over the same time period, the cost of benefits increased sharply by 21.8% from $7.7 billion to $9.4 billion.
In its stimulus responses to the COVID-19 pandemic beginning in March 2020, the federal government issued several expansions and increases to the SNAP program. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act provided short-term SNAP benefit increases. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act provided $15.8 billion of additional emergency funding for SNAP. In December 2020, the Consolidated Appropriations Act designated an additional $13 billion to SNAP, increasing the monthly individual benefit by 15% until June 2021.
The USDA reports that 37 states, as well as the District of Columbia, Guam and the Virgin Islands, have secured extensions to SNAP emergency allotments through November 2021. Seven states, plus the District of Columbia, have secured that extension through the end of the year. These extensions come when recent data show a decrease in the number of households utilizing SNAP benefits.
NPR News reported that in August, the Biden administration announced that beginning in October, food stamp benefits would rise more than 25% above pre-pandemic levels. This averages to $157 per person per month, up from $121.
