Food Stamp Act 1997

In the United States of America, there is enough food in this country that the total amount of agricultural exports is enough to feed everyone twice over (Dorsch, 2013). The problem is that even though there is so much food in this country millions of people require assistance to purchase the food and feed their families. Dating back almost 100 years, the now called Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) has evolved to keep up with the changing needs of the Country. In 1933 SNAP was built into Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA). The AAA was put into law during the great depression. The purpose of the law was to help farmers deal with the excess supply of crops by having the government subsidize the cost. The government would also distribute these crops to relief agencies and local communities (The History of SNAP). In 1964, President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the Food Stamp Act. With this legislation enacted it was now required to purchase stamps. These stamps also had bonus amounts that were determined by income level. In the 90’s and early 2000s major changes were done to SNAP. The electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card was

the Food Stamp Program to give the economy a boost so that people would spend more money

Did you know that 17% of Americans in rural areas live below the poverty line, and out of those 17%, 15 million of those individuals are children? (Hunger In America 2014). The month of September was Hunger Action month and many individuals helped raise awareness by taking the Food Stamp (SNAP) Challenge. This challenge consists of an individual living on the SNAP balance of a $6-7 per day budget for food. Many individuals came to the realization that this is a difficult budget, and does not meet the nutritional needs for a family.

In the United State, there is a federal nutrition program for low income people to help food budget and buy healthy food. People who have low income in the United States get the food stamps, also known as “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)”. For every month, eligible people who have low income get benefits deposited in to their EBT account. Once they get food stamp, people can purchase food items including seeds and plants to grow food in their house or backyard. It can be used at a grocery store, a supermarket, a farmer 's market, and a shelter that serves meals. However, with all these great benefits, people still eat unhealthy because of too much time consuming, limited money, some food dessert area, and the benefits allow people to eat junk food.

Food stamps have helped a lot of people out and I have no doubt about that in my mind. Many families depend on

only conviction, and twelve states have eliminated the ban entirely. Lastly, women are disproportionately affected by such provisions since they are the primary recipient of these welfare benefits. Since the adoption of the welfare reform law of 1996, an estimated of 92,000 women in 23 states, which more than half of them were African American and Latina (Mauer, 2003). Public Assistance such as food stamps is a critical component to support their family, how the state handles the loss of eligibility varies, with some actions being more punitive than others. For example, Texas has a lifetime ban on food stamps for people convicted of a drug felony. The state loses out on federal funds that could be used to help people with drug felony convictions

People who live in rural America rely more heavily on the federal Food Stamp Program, according to The Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. The Institute's analysis found that while 22 percent of Americans lived in rural areas in 2001, a full 31 percent of the nation's food stamp beneficiaries lived there. In all, 4.6 million rural residents received food stamp benefits in 2001, the analysis found.

Poverty in the suburbs has been a huge struggle for the government and its citizens. The suburbs make up about 60% of our nation’s populations. (Berube & Kneebone, 2013) Between 2000 and 2013, the suburban poor made up 56% of our nations poverty rate. Overall, poverty has increased and shifted substantially from just low income families to the working class. The main reason is wages are not covering individual needs. In efforts of the government, the Welfare Reform Act of 1996 was established. In 1996, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) was implemented. Federal welfare reform gave permission to states allowing them the opportunity to reform their welfare systems.

There was a surplus of farmer’s foods when the great depression started in America. The price for food had fallen from 109 in 1919 to 64 in 1931. The Federal Farm Board bought millions of bushels of wheat and bales of cotton to try to stave off some the minor surplus on the market. It was a temporary situation that did not help deal with the overproduction. The Government had to announce they were pulling out of the wheat market in 1931 which plunged the Kansas City price down to 27 cents a bushel. Many could not survive the sudden drop in the stock market. The Federal Farm Board made many enemies with their actions. “(Poppendieck & Nestle) The result of the overwhelming

Granted during the period of Welfare Reform there was also an overall decline in poverty there were still significant decreases in SNAP participation researchers suggest could not completely be accounted for by macroeconomic climate. While there weren’t a significant amount of changes in SNAP because of Welfare Reform, Welfare Reform did enact requirements that made legal immigrants unable for benefits unless they have 10 years of work history in the United States. Drug felons were also eliminated from eligibility and those of prime age and able-body were to receive SNAP for only 3 months in a 3 year period. Welfare Reform also produced a work requirement where able bodied individuals had to be looking for employment or keep a job if reasonably able to keep employment. The 1998 Agricultural Bill removed most of the restricted eligibility given to SNAP from Welfare Reform (Hoynes & Schanzebach, 2015; U.S. Department of Agriculture Report No. FSP-01-WEL, 2001; Zedlewski & Gruber,

The participants were still required to purchase these stamps, but took away the special stamps for surplus foods. In 1964, the Food Stamp Act was put in action by President Johnson. This act put more rules and specifications to the food stamps program. This also made it into a law instead of a pilot program. The original budget for this plan was $75 million in the first year and would increase to $200 million in the third year. The estimated overall participation was 4 million, but the participation would quickly surpass that in 1970. By October 1974, there was an overall 15 million participants in the food stamp

R/s Tonya can’t manage her food stamps and money. R/s the Tonya drags her four children: Shayla (8), Lucas (6), Payton (5), and Kamden (1) around like rag dolls. R/s Tonya asks for money when she runs out of food stamps. R/s Tonya goes to Starting Point methadone clinic every other week. R/s Tonya’s car is nasty with food and spilled drinks. R/s the children are dirty. R/s Payton’s hair is never combed and she keep having lice. R/s Tonya’s light bill is always past due. R/s Shayla has to take care of the little child. R/s at Tonya’s old house the dirty clothes were knee deep.

There are many social programs that should continue to be funded and permanent for as long as needed including EBT Food Stamps, reduced or free meals, unemployment benefits, housing vouchers, and other programs involved with social security. There should be constant funding and this is done by the help of government and taxing those in the top 1%, considering they hold all the wealth and income in the country. Children who grow up in low-income families are exposed to more environmental stressors, such as less access to healthy food, unsafe neighborhoods and stressed parents. A way by relieving some of the mental and developmental problems that poverty can cause for a kid is having amazing, nurturing, and high quality schooling. We should

The program known today as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (S.N.A.P.) actually started in 1939 as the food stamp program. Over the years, there have been several pieces of legislation that have either sustained, expanded or improved on the program. Legislation such as the Food Stamp Act of 1964, the expansion of the program to all 50 states in 1974, the addition of the Electronic Benefits Transfer card in 2004 and in 2008 when the food stamp program was renamed to S.N.A.P. (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, 2014)

Also within this transitional housing program Trader Joe’s donates fresh food, the clients get a fresh breakfast as well as dinner within this program. The program does not offer lunch, so the clients can either eat two meals a day or purchase their own food for lunch. A few of the clients are granted food stamps so use that money to purchase their lunches. If a client does not collect food stamps, I can help them with the process of applying for food stamps because the application process can be somewhat overwhelming for