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Food Research and Action Center releases state-by-state data on impact of SNAP benefits

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Elizabeth Santamour, 2022 Burroughs Wellcome Fund Sandhills Regional Teacher of the Year, wears a shirt that says 'Food is the most important school supply.' Courtesy of School Meals for All NC

The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) released a fact sheet in March looking at the impact of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in North Carolina. The release is part of FRAC’s state-by-state analysis of the impacts of SNAP benefits. 

According to an accompanying press release, most SNAP participants in the U.S. are older adults, people with disabilities, people living in rural areas, and households with children. 

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SNAP helps over 1.6 million people in North Carolina put food on the table, including almost 650,000 children in 2022 alone. The fact sheet explains that the nutrition program also helps provide these children with eligibility for the Free and Reduced Price Lunch program, and that restrictions on SNAP benefits would lead to children in low income families losing access to free school meals.

Last year, the average North Carolina SNAP participant received $173.06 a month, or $5.69 a day. The press release explains that reducing these amounts would not just push people further into poverty and hunger, but also put more strain on local food pantries: For every meal these organizations provide, SNAP provides nine. 

Courtesy of the Food Research and Action Center

FRAC’s analysis refers to the budget resolution U.S. House Republicans introduced in February that called for steep spending reductions within several federal programs. On April 10, the House passed a budget framework adopted by the Senate after “Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune publicly promised to seek at least $1.5 trillion in spending cuts to safety-net programs in the final package,” according to Politico.

Congress will now move into the budget reconciliation process, and future legislation drafted by the House Agriculture Committee will detail any specific policy changes to SNAP.

For now, though, FRAC’s research provides an alarming overview of how these potential changes might affect recipients in both North Carolinians and the rest of the country.

“The proposed SNAP cuts would strip away food assistance from millions of families, increase hunger and negative health outcomes and weaken local economies. These proposals would have devastating consequences for communities across the country,” said Crystal FitzSimons, interim president of FRAC in the press release.