The Truth of Food Stamps

“The Grim Economics of Food Stamps”

LA Times

By the Times editorial Board

November 3, 2013

The Truth of Food Stamps

On November 1, the federal government rolled back food stamp benefits for 47.6 million people who receive them, which was the official end to one of the last stimulus efforts from President Obama’s first months in office. In turn, this has created conflict among people who are poor because they do not have enough money to eat, therefore they are not getting enough to eat because of this. This action has negatively affected thousands of people all over the United States. This insensitive action was not done at the right time considering the disarray and unavailability of job opportunities and fair pay. This cut in food stamps is not a good economic policy.

Over the next ten month, this 5.5% reduction will pull approximately five billion dollars in federal spending out of the economy. This money was borrowed, so the government is taking one step closer to economic sustainability. However, the federal government will not make it all the way to economic sustainability by failing to adhere to put food on the table for poor Americans.

In April of 2009, Congress increased the maximum food stamp benefit by 13.6% as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a $787-billion effort to stimulate the economy. This was meant to pay for the cost-of-living, in advance, that the program was expected to receive over the next five years. An estimate states that for every one-dollar in food stamps leads to $1.70 in economic activity.

But the lawmakers soon withdrew some of the budget for the higher food stamp benefits, using it to help pay for Medicaid benefits, teacher salaries, and a childhood nutrition program. The benefits were cut across the board on November 1. The maximum monthly benefit will shrink by thirty-six dollars for a family of four, to $632. For the average recipient, the aid will drop to $1.40 per meal.

Even with the enormous lowered benefits, the price for food stamps is still costing close to 80 billion dollars a year. This is because of the deep-seated, complex recession that required the food stamp rolls to expand, along with the increased unemployment rate. The new farm bill that lawmakers are negotiating will almost certainly shrink that number because both chambers want to amend fewer people eligible for the benefits.  

The percentage of people on food stamps is significantly higher than originally anticipated. The government must realize that pulling federal dollars out of the economy has consequences too and that their money must be equally balanced. The best way to cut the amount of money spent on food stamps is not to lower the benefits, but, instead, offer more jobs for people to ultimately get them off of food stamps, entirely. The government needs to make the job-less, “jobbed.” American is in desperate need of work now more than ever and the government’s original intention for their actions will not be fulfilled unless they offer more jobs to Americans.