Electronic Publications from the Food Assistance & Nutrition Research Program No. (EFAN-02014-1) 50 pp
Iowa Food Stamp Leavers Survey: Final Report
Enrollment in Iowa's Food Stamp Program (FSP) sharply decreased in the last years of the 1990s, following significant changes in social assistance programs in the State, passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, and a period of good economic conditions. Data collected in a 1999 survey provide information about the well-being of families that had participated in Iowa's FSP in 1997, the time immediately following introduction of the new regulations. Nearly 58 percent of those participating in the FSP in 1997 were not participating in the program when interviewed in 1999. Those who left the FSP in 1997 (including working age adults without dependents or a disability) had better economic and employment outcomes than others. Adults without dependents or a disability who remained in the FSP in 1997 had the greatest hardships: They were most likely to have very low income, had less contribution from earned income, and were more likely to experience food insecurity and hunger in the last year. Over half of all of the households in the survey had used private food assistance in the past year.
For a description of the methodology for the study, see Iowa Food Stamp Leavers Survey: Methodology Report, E-FAN 02014-2.
Keywords: Food Stamp Program, PRWORA, ABAWD, leaver, Iowa
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