Republicans need to start a national conversation about a program that grew nearly 69% between 2008 and 2013.
When Congress passed welfare reform in 1996, the food-stamp program was spared. Nearly two decades later, its work requirements remain weak, and incentives to promote the purchase of healthy foods are nonexistent. House and Senate Republicans released spending proposals last week that aim to address these problems, which have been costly, and not merely in budgetary terms.
Officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, the food-stamp program has become the country’s fastest-growing means-tested social-welfare program. Only Medicaid is more expensive. Between 2000 and 2013, SNAP caseloads grew to 47.6 million from 17.2 million, and spending grew to $80 billion from $20.6 billion, according to the Agriculture Department. SNAP participation fell slightly last year, to 46.5 million individuals, as the economy improved, but that still leaves a population the size of Spain’s living in the U.S. on food stamps.
Yes, the Great Recession played a role in this alarming trend, which began under George W. Bush, but not a big one. Between 2008 and 2013, SNAP recipients grew nearly 69%. By contrast, the poverty rate increased just 16.5% during the same period. The unprecedented jump in food-stamp use over the past six years has mostly been driven by manufactured demand. The Obama administration has attempted to turn SNAP into a middle-class entitlement by easing eligibility rules and recruiting new food-stamp recipients.
Reversing course while President Obama is still in office is unlikely. Democrats tend to consider greater government dependence an achievement and use handouts to increase voter support. The president considers European-style welfare states a model for America. Still, Republicans are right to use their majorities to begin a national conversation on the nature of the food-stamp problem.