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Policy Watch: The Food Stamp Program and Welfare Reform

Author

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  • Betsey A. Kuhn

Abstract

Major changes have been proposed for the Food Stamp Program, including replacing the program with block grants to the states, cashing out the benefits, and reducing program funding from baseline levels. This paper will explore the impacts of food stamp reform on food spending, income support, welfare reform, agriculture, and the rest of the economy. A comprehensive set of scenarios is used to examine the potential economic consequences. The analysis shows that the effect of cashing out the Food Stamp Program can be as much as four times larger than the effects of program reduction alone.

Suggested Citation

  • Betsey A. Kuhn, 1996. "Policy Watch: The Food Stamp Program and Welfare Reform," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 10(2), pages 189-198, Spring.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:jecper:v:10:y:1996:i:2:p:189-98
    Note: DOI: 10.1257/jep.10.2.189
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    File URL: http://www.aeaweb.org/articles.php?doi=10.1257/jep.10.2.189
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hamermesh, Daniel S & Johannes, James M, 1985. "Food Stamps as Money: The Macroeconomics of a Transfer Program," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 93(1), pages 205-213, February.
    2. Robinson, Sherman & Kilkenny, Maureen & Hanson, Kenneth, 1990. "The USDA/ERS Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) Model of the United States," Staff Reports 278341, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    3. Rebecca M. Blank & Patricia Ruggles, 1993. "When Do Women Use AFDC & Food Stamps? The Dynamics of Eligibility vs. Participation," NBER Working Papers 4429, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Moffitt, Robert, 1990. "Has State Redistribution Policy Grown More Conservative?," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 43(2), pages 123-142, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Qi Zhang & Zhuo Chen & Norou Diawara & Youfa Wang, 2011. "Prices of Unhealthy Foods, Food Stamp Program Participation, and Body Weight Status Among U.S. Low-Income Women," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 32(2), pages 245-256, June.
    2. Diane Whitmore, 2002. "What Are Food Stamps Worth?," Working Papers 847, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    3. Vogel, Stephen & Miller, Cristina & Ralston, Katherine, 2021. "Impact of USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) on Rural and Urban Economies in the Aftermath of the Great Recession," USDA Miscellaneous 314934, United States Department of Agriculture.
    4. Diane Whitmore, 2002. "What Are Food Stamps Worth?," Working Papers 847, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    5. Zhuo Chen & Qi Zhang, 2011. "Nutrigenomics Hypothesis: Examining the Association Between Food Stamp Program Participation and Bodyweight Among Low-Income Women," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 32(3), pages 508-520, September.
    6. Janet Currie, 2003. "US Food and Nutrition Programs," NBER Chapters, in: Means-Tested Transfer Programs in the United States, pages 199-290, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs

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