Social Assistance Programs and Outcomes: Food Assistance in the Context of Welfare Reform

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2006-09-01
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Jensen, Helen
Professor Emeritus
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Huffman, Sonya
Adjunct Associate Professor Emeritus
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Center for Agricultural and Rural Development

The Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD) conducts innovative public policy and economic research on agricultural, environmental, and food issues. CARD uniquely combines academic excellence with engagement and anticipatory thinking to inform and benefit society.

CARD researchers develop and apply economic theory, quantitative methods, and interdisciplinary approaches to create relevant knowledge. Communication efforts target state and federal policymakers; the research community; agricultural, food, and environmental groups; individual decision-makers; and international audiences.

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Center for Agricultural and Rural Development
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Food assistance programs play an important role in meeting the basic needs of low-income households. We consider the complex interactions among food stamps, labor force participation, and food insecurity status of low-income households under different program designs and economic conditions. The analysis uses data from the Survey of Program Dynamics to jointly estimate the role of participation in the Food Stamp Program (FSP), labor market participation and well-being, measured as food security, through the use of a simultaneous equation model. The results of our research suggest that food insecurity has a positive effect on FSP participation while labor force participation reduces FSP participation. Furthermore, FSP participation is more responsive to changes in the program benefits than to changes in nonlabor income. The linkages among food program participation, labor force participation, and well-being, measured in terms of food insecurity, are complex. The structural approach provides evidence that, among low-income households, program parameters affect FSP participation but no evidence that the food assistance reduces food insecurity.

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