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The 2005 Gulf Coast Hurricanes' Effect on Food Stamp Program
Caseloads and Benefits Issued
Kenneth Hanson and Victor Oliveira
Economic Research Report Number 37, February 2007
In fall 2005, Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma devastated
areas along much of the Gulf Coast, resulting in greater demand
for food stamps by millions of Gulf Coast State residents and
evacuees. Hurricane Katrina came ashore in Louisiana on August
29. Hurricane Rita made landfall on September 24 near the Louisiana/Texas
border. Hurricane Wilma hit Florida on October 24.
During disasters, USDA delivers emergency food assistance in
two ways. Initially, emergency food commodities are provided
to shelters, to other mass feeding sites, and directly to households
when normal commercial channels of food distribution may be
disrupted. USDA also issues emergency food stamps through the
Disaster Food Stamp Program (DFSP), an extension of the regular
Food Stamp Program. Under the DFSP, eligibility requirements
are temporarily relaxed so that benefits can be quickly provided
to households that may not ordinarily qualify for food stamps
but suddenly need food assistance.
What Is the Issue?
The Federal response to the disasters has received much attention;
information about food stamp use will help provide a more complete
picture of the use of public assistance both during and after
the hurricanes. To provide this information, we examined the
effect of the hurricanes on food stamp caseloads and benefits
issued.
What Did the Study Find?
One effect of the hurricanes was a dramatic spike in both Food
Stamp Program caseloads and benefits issued. In November 2005,
29.7 million people received food stamps, the largest number
ever to receive food stamps in a single month and about 4 million—or
15 percent—more than just 3 months earlier.
State-Level Impacts. During the peak-impact period of September
to November 2005, the average Food Stamp Program caseload increased
by 12 percent relative to the pre-hurricane period of March
to August 2005. As would be expected, most of this increase
in caseload occurred in the five Gulf Coast States hardest hit
by the hurricanes—Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana,
and Texas. Average monthly caseloads in these Disaster States
during the peak-impact period increased by 48 percent compared
with only 2 percent for the other States. However, the hurricanes’
impact in terms of both magnitude and duration differed widely
among the five Disaster States. For example, the increase in
caseload was largest in Florida, but the effect was brief, lasting
only 1 month. Louisiana experienced a large increase in caseload
lasting several months before dropping to below pre-hurricane
levels. In Texas, caseload remained significantly above pre-hurricane
levels even 5 months after hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
By March 2006, food stamp caseloads in the Disaster States
were only 1 percent greater than the pre-hurricane caseloads
in August 2005. Of the five Disaster States, Texas was the only
one in which the food stamp caseload in March 2006 exceeded
the caseload in August 2005.
The impact of the hurricanes also spread to other States because
of their enrollment of hurricane evacuees in the Food Stamp
Program. Average caseloads in the Major Evacuee States increased
by 5 percent compared with only 2 percent in all other Unaffected
States.
The hurricanes also affected the average food stamp benefit
per person, which increased in Disaster States during the peak-impact
period. In addition, the average size of food stamp households
in Disaster States increased in November. However, this result
was due to the situation in Florida, where the average size
of households enrolling in the DFSP was larger than the average
size of households participating in the regular Food Stamp Program.
National-Level Impacts. We estimate that the hurricanes increased
food stamp benefits issued from September 2005 through January
2006 by almost $1.2 billion compared with what they would have
been without the hurricanes. Although the hurricanes have had
long-lasting effects on some local areas, this analysis suggests
that, by February 2006, the effect of the hurricanes on food
stamp caseloads and benefits issued at the national level had
largely dissipated. The estimate of the hurricanes’ impact
on the Food Stamp Program reported here is more comprehensive
than estimates derived solely from State administrative reports
of disaster benefits issued.
We estimate that the difference between actual caseloads and
what caseloads would have been without the hurricanes was 2
million people in September, due to Hurricane Katrina. In October,
the estimated difference was 2.15 million people due to Hurricanes
Rita and Katrina. Hurricane Wilma caused a large 1-month increase
in caseload for Florida, resulting in an estimated difference
of 3.74 million people in November 2005. The actual and estimated
food stamp caseloads for the Disaster States converged in February
2006 at a level of 5.43 million, about equal to the pre-hurricane
level in August 2005 of 5.38 million.
How Was the Study Conducted?
The study uses 13 months (March 2005-March 2006) of State-level
data from USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) on Food
Stamp Program caseloads and benefits issued to examine the hurricanes’
impact on food stamp caseloads and benefits issued. The study
analyzes caseloads for three groups of States—Disaster
States, Major Evacuee States, and Unaffected States—over
3 distinct periods—6-month pre-hurricane period, 3-month
peak-impact period, and 4-month post-hurricane period. Regression
analyses were used to estimate what the national food stamp
caseloads and benefits issued would have been in the absence
of the hurricanes. The estimates of caseloads and benefits issued
in the absence of the hurricanes were used to determine the
impact of the hurricanes at the national level.
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