Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

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Governors Plead for Urgent Changes to Food Aid

For example, only 6 states allow people in program to order groceries online

(Newser) - Going out to buy food terrifies Yvonne Knight, a 38-year-old woman with cerebral palsy, but she is one of millions of people who receive food aid through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that can't be used in flexible ways. "Every time I go out, I put myself...

New Trump Rule Will Take Food Stamp Benefits From 668K

Administration says it will help people go 'from welfare to work'

(Newser) - Hundreds of thousands of Americans who rely on the federal food stamp program will lose their benefits under a new Trump administration rule that will tighten work requirements for recipients, the AP reports. The move by the administration is the latest in its attempt to scale back the social safety...

USDA Chief: We're Nixing 'Loopholes' for Food Stamps

New proposal from Trump administration could kick 3.1M people out of SNAP program

(Newser) - A new proposal from the Trump administration Tuesday could cut more than 3 million people from the food stamps program. Per Reuters , the Department of Agriculture says a tightening of who qualifies for SNAP, aka the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, would save the federal government about $2.5 billion annually;...

Trump Administration May Get Its Food Stamps Wish After All

USDA proposal would tighten waiver eligibility on work requirements

(Newser) - It may soon be more difficult to get food stamps if you're jobless. The Washington Post reports the USDA has a new proposal that would tighten eligibility for food assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and it's tied to unemployment. Under the current system, most adults who...

Trump's Plan: Deliver Food Boxes Instead of Food Stamps

But critics say the idea of an 'America's Harvest Box' is 'prone to failure'

(Newser) - Trump administration members are hailing their newest idea as a "bold" approach that would save the government billions and feed more than 38 million people in low-income households, but critics are calling it an approach that's "prone to failure." President Trump's 2019 budget plan was...

Tougher 'Able-Bodied' Work Rules Expected for Benefits

Trump budget calls for cuts in food stamps, Medicaid

(Newser) - President Trump unveils his first detailed budget plan on Tuesday, and word leaking out in advance suggests he wants big cuts for Medicaid and food stamps. The Washington Post reports that Trump's budget slashes Medicaid by $800 billion over 10 years, meaning he's on board with the House...

Bill Would Ban Food Stamp Sales of Steak, Lobster

But it's considered unlikely to pass

(Newser) - A new bill introduced by New York state Sen. Patty Ritchie would ban the purchase of "luxury food items" and less-healthy food choices through the state's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, the Daily Meal reports. The bill gives examples of foods that should...

Food Stamp Cuts Hit, Bring Per-Meal Average to $1.40

One in 7 are on the supplemental nutrition assistance program

(Newser) - The moment food banks across the country have been bracing for is here: Today, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program loses $5 billion in funding. The cuts will hit across the board, affecting all 47 million people—about 1 in 7 Americans and counting —who receive assistance, dropping the maximum...

Glitch Torpedoes Food Stamps in 17 States

Xerox said it had restored service by last night

(Newser) - You might think that the nation's food stamps program finds its biggest threat in the House of Representatives , but yesterday it was an innocent test of a backup system that felled the system in 17 states, including Ohio and Michigan. The system failure that began yesterday morning took out...

Panera CEO Is Eating on $4.50 a Day for a Week

Ron Shaich says he can't stop thinking about food

(Newser) - Panera Bread CEO Ron Shaich is very hungry. "I can't stop thinking about food," he wrote on his LinkedIn blog yesterday. That's because he was on day 4 of a weeklong challenge to eat on just $4.50 per day. He's doing it to raise...

South Carolina Budget May Limit ... Junk Food

It's a slap at Gov. Haley's push to restrict what food stamps can buy

(Newser) - Lawmakers in South Carolina are trying to keep junk food out of the governor's mansion. State senators inserted a clause in the 2013-14 budget plan that would bar Gov. Nikki Haley's office from buying junk food with public money, whether for employee treats or entertaining. The move was...

Food Stamps Shouldn't Pay for Junk Food

Congress needs to change the rules: Charles Lane

(Newser) - The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, you'll notice, has the word "nutrition" in the title. So why is it that SNAP debit cards, aka food stamps, can be used to purchase such decidedly non-nutritious items as Cheetos and Fanta orange soda? The Agriculture Department itself states, on its website,...

Cory Booker's Food Stamp Regret: I Didn't Buy Eggs
Cory Booker's Food Stamp
Regret: I Didn't Buy Eggs
weeklong challenge
Dec 5, 2012 9:22 AM CST

Cory Booker's Food Stamp Regret: I Didn't Buy Eggs

Newark mayor thinks he should have clipped coupons, too

(Newser) - Cory Booker began his food stamp challenge yesterday, showing off his decidedly modest grocery haul for the week to the New Jersey Star-Ledger . The vegetarian mayor spent $29.78 on an assortment that included 17 cans of beans, seven yams, two bags of frozen vegetables, and two apples. "If...

Food Stamp Use: Up 70% Since 2007, and Growing

Improving economy will limit recipients after that, says CBO report

(Newser) - We earlier reported that 45 million Americans are currently on food stamps, and a new report out of the Congressional Budget Office puts that number in perspective: The number of food stamp users has jumped 70% since 2007, and shows no signs of stopping. The CBO expects it to rise...

US Hunger Remains at Record High
US Hunger Remains at Record High
Nov 16, 2010 11:49 AM CST

US Hunger Remains at Record High

Roughly 15% of Americans are 'food insecure'

(Newser) - The number of Americans dealing with hunger remained at a record high last year, according to a new USDA report, with 14.7% of US households considered “food insecure.” That’s a hair above the 14.6% that battled hunger in 2008, and the highest level seen in...

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