Food Stamps

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) administers food assistance programs that help provide food for low to no income families. It is their goal to increase food security and reduce hunger by increasing access to food, a healthful diet, and nutrition education for low-income Americans (Caswell, 2013, para. 1). Some of the current nutrition assistance programs include “the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)”(Caswell, 2013, para. 1). SNAP will be the primary nutrition assistance program of the paper at hand. No matter how morally good it is to try to help reduce hunger and increase food security within the United States, there are still many questions regarding issues with SNAP. This paper will be discussing why there is such a strong support for the program, how it helps the United States as a whole, problems with the program, and why some people are against SNAP.

Food stamps are an important component of low-income families’ monthly resources, increasing the chances that families are able to meet basic needs (Ratcliffe, McKernan & Finegold, 2008). This form of food relief dates back to the Great Depression when many Americans lost their jobs and did not have money to feed their families. People were starving while farmers produced abundant crop that could not be sold due to a lack of consumers with buying power (Dorsch, 2013). The Federal Surplus Relief Corporation which was a part of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, bought basic farm goods at low prices and distributed the among hunger relief agencies in different states and local communities (Congressional Digest, 2013).

Food Stamp is a government-funded program in the United States. This is a program that helps people buy food for their families; in other words, it is a very important program to families living in poverty. It is the nation’s most important program in the fight against hunger. This program was developed in the 1960’s; it is made to improve the nutrition level and food purchasing power of people with low-income. This program is offered to people who cannot afford to buy groceries for their families, regardless of age, color, sex or religion. Food Stamps can only be used to buy food items not hygiene or household items, and it’s offered only on a monthly basis.

SNAP is the foundation of nutrition assistance programs. This program provides over 47 million individuals in nearly 23 million low-income households. The eligibility is not restricted to certain groups of individuals, and because of this, SNAP serves a vast amount of families with children, elderly people, and individuals with disabilities. Others eligible for SNAP include families with adults who work in low-wage jobs, unemployed workers, and those with a fixed income. The SNAP Program assists about 72 percent of people who live in households with children. Nearly 25 percent of households with seniors and individuals with disabilities, are also assisted (Rosenbaum, 2013).

Time to go to the grocery store with only $29.00 worth of food stamps for the

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

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

Medicaid, WIC Programs, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program known as “food stamps”, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and HUD which deals with housing are only a few of the programs that are available for the poor and underemployed today. These government programs cost the taxpayers billions of dollars. State and federal government try every year to reduce programs. In Mississippi, Medicaid has been reduced although children and the disabled are still covered. SNAP commonly known as food stamps have also been reduce and restricted to balance both the state and federal government. At the height of the recession, the last few years, has increased the number of single bread winner families seeking help by applying for government welfare programs. We often hear of people selling their food stamps for things that are not approved. These stories are used by the people who do not think that tax money should be used to support people who do not work. Changing the name of “welfare” to TANF has not slowed the

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

According to Reuters, approximately 47 million people receive Food Stamps. That equates to 1 in 8 Americans (Abbott). Food Stamps is away to supplement those who are having trouble finding jobs and supporting their families. There are individuals who take it for granted, and abuse the system. Many people apply yearly for assistance, but get turned away because their case is insufficient, or there is simply not enough room to accommodate them. According to an article, states that since Food Stamps are running out of funds and people are turning to food banks for support (Food Assistance Becoming the "New Normal). Food banks are designed for extreme measures such a natural disaster, extreme weather conditions, and the homeless.

A Wide majority of people with food stamps don’t spend that money on the food. They’ll buy clothes or toys and ruin their opportunity to put that money where it needs to

As I drive by 2520 Irving Blvd Street, I distinctly recall what it felt like to walk out of the Department of Workforce Services building after I figured out that my family qualified for food stamps. There wasn’t a rainbow that day, after sharp flowing sprinkles fell from the sky. The parking lot was vacant for the most part. As our family walked to our old, beat up car my mother had shed a tear of relief. For some people that don’t know what food stamps (S.N.A.P.) are, it is benefits from the government usually based on total gross income. The total amount of money the state will provide depends on several criteria. Before you judge, which I odds are you’ve already done, given that I just told you that my family was impermanently on public assistance. First off, my mom tried to do everything right. She stayed up late on Wednesday nights clipping coupons. She baked her own bread. She steered away from credit card debt. She drove a 10-year-old car. She even tried to get her GED except her French is stronger than her English and she couldn’t comprehend much. Amongst the United States is handling an ongoing issue about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (S.N.A.P.), which is nearly dropping 47 million Americans whom don’t qualify for food stamps. Overall would increasing hardship and food insecurities for families that severely need it. While some people milk the system and don’t benefit our country trying to abuse it we will talk about how great the amount of cuts

According to Alyssa Brown, “51% of adults want to lose weight, [but] barely half as many (25%) say they are seriously working towards that goal. This discrepancy between Americans’ weight-loss desires and behaviors has existed for years”(Brown). According to society, the definition of a healthy person is someone who exercises often and eats healthy foods. Even though people want to be healthy, becoming healthy is a hard task. Surely it is much easier to lay around at home and eat chips than to work out at the gym. Maybe this is why obesity rates are on the rise. A medical study estimates that “75% of the U.S. population will be classified as overweight or obese or obese by the year 2020” (NewsMax). People wonder, what is the solution to this

Skepticism of people’s true need ties into the support of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formally known as Food Stamps. By the 1990’s conservatives and some liberals argued that the Johnson-era reforms had created a culture of dependency on government aid. In 1996 Congress overhauled the welfare system by imposing work requirements and putting time limits on cash payments to the needy. This act caused the SNAP rolls to drop, but the economic crisis that began in 2007 pushed the national unemployment rate above 9 percent. With unemployment at an all-time high this forced millions of families to seek government aid. In response to this new need the SNAP program was expanded as part of the stimulus package in 2009. This expansion was intended to be a temporary fix with cuts to the program to being in 2013. The thought

Because I am a cashier at Town & Country, I see many different people come into the familiar regularly. It is my job to treat customers with utmost respect while they are shopping there. However, I sometimes tend to silently disprove of some people due to their payment methods. Most states offer food stamps to people who need some financial assistance. Food stamps allow people to buy strictly food items without using their own money. The initial purpose of food stamps is simply to provide help for those families who qualify for the program. Although food stamps are meant to assist those in need, some individuals tend to abuse the system. That infuriates the taxpayers in the United States. Taxpayers get frustrated when individuals on food stamps come in and buy very expensive or unhealthy groceries. The taxpayers then think their money is being used to support an individual’s unhealthy eating habits.