There were 8.5 million fewer people on food stamps in 2018 than in December 2013, when 15.2 percent of residents nationwide — the highest percentage in recent decades — were receiving benefits under the government program.
In October, the percentage of residents receiving food assistance under the program formally known as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) stood at 11.8 percent. That’s almost down to the same levels as in April 2009 when temporary increases in benefits and adjustment of rules led to more people receiving funding following the recession.
While the nation’s share of SNAP recipients has fallen in recent years, it hasn’t fallen equally across the country as the federal government provided $60.6 billion last year to help people buy food from places as varied as supermarkets, farmers markets and convenience stores.
