The Downs and Ups of the SNAP Caseload: What Matters?

Abstract

Beginning in the 1990s, states have received unprecedented flexibility to determine Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility and program administration. We find state SNAP policies accounted for nearly half of the 2000–2016 caseload increase. State economic conditions also play an important role in caseload changes, accounting for almost half of the 2007 through 2013 increase. Within distinct periods of our 1990–2016 data, policy and the economy make different contributions to caseload changes. Policy simulations indicate that mandating states to maintain their 2000 SNAP policies, prior to the greatest expansion in latitude, would have lowered 2000–2016 caseload growth by 38%.

Do state Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program policies influence program participation among seniors?

“…Programmatic features of SNAP have been shown to generally influence SNAP participation through increases in generosity (Nicoll, 2015; Nord & Prell, 2011), expansions in eligibility (Capps et al, 2004; Jones, 2020), reductions in transaction costs (Currie, 2006; Dickert‐Conlin et al, 2021; Ganong & Liebman, 2018), and increases in outreach (Bartlett et al, 2004; Ratcliffe et al, 2008). Ziliak (2015) decomposed changes in SNAP participation driven by policy and economic factors and found that policy had a larger long‐term impact than previously estimated.…”

When States Align Social Welfare Programs: Considering the Child Support Income Exclusion for SNAP

“…These state differences in accessibility have become more pronounced over time (Stacy, Tiehen, and Marquardt, 2018). Importantly, state accessibility has been found to be correlated with state caseloads (Stacy, Tiehen, and Marquardt, 2018; Klerman and Danielson, 2011; Dickert‐Conlin et al., 2016; Ziliak, 2015; Ratcliffe, McKernan, and Finegold, 2008), suggesting that state choices regarding the structure of their SNAP program matter.…”

SNAP Work Requirement and Food Insecurity

“…In addition, I obtain data on several time-varying state-level characteristics. Ganong and Liebman (2018) and Dickert-Conlin et al (2021) show that business cycle fluctuations, statelevel policy expansions, and changes in local unemployment rate explain the trends in SNAP take-up rate over the past two decades. 17 To control for these state-specific effects, I use annual state unemployment rates (the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, various years), the political affiliation of the state governor (the Council of State Governments: Knowledge Centre, Book of the States 2017), and state population estimates (US Census Bureau, Population Estimates, 2017).…”

“…In a recent series of papers, Hoynes, Schanzenbach and co-authors provide a comprehensive review of the introduction and early expansion of SNAP. 4 In comparison to other welfare programs, SNAP reaches a broad range of economically disadvantaged populations as the eligibility for receiving SNAP benefits does not generally depend on family structure, age, health or disability status (Dickert-Conlin, Fitzpatrick, Stacy, & Tiehen, 2021). The basic eligibility criteria require the household gross income to be 130 or less of the federal poverty level (FPL) and the household net income to be 100 percent or less of the FPL.…”