7 States With the Most People on Food Stamps

[mick silver]

States with the most people on food stamps(Information is current as of February, 2015. Rankings have also changed to reflect current data.)
7. Louisiana

Number of food stamp recipients: 877,340
Percentage of the state’s population on food stamps: 18.87%
Total cost of just these benefits alone (That is, how much do just the money on those EBT cards cost the state?): Around $108.22 million
Cost of benefits alone per capita in this state: $23.27

6. West Virginia

Number of food stamp recipients: 362,501
Percentage of the state’s population on food stamps: 19.59%
Total cost of just these benefits alone (That is, how much do just the money on those EBT cards cost the state?): Around $44.71 million
Cost of benefits alone per capita in this state: $24.17 per person

5. Tennessee

Number of food stamp recipients: Just over 1.31 million
Percentage of the state’s population on food stamps: 20.04%
Total cost of just these benefits alone (That is, how much do just the money on those EBT cards cost the state?): Around $161.9 million
Cost of benefits alone per capita in this state: $24.72

4. Oregon

Number of food stamp recipients: 802,190
Percentage of the state’s population on food stamps: 20.21%
Total cost of just these benefits alone (That is, how much do just the money on those EBT cards cost the state?): Around $98.96 million
Cost of benefits alone per capita in this state: $24.92 per person

3. New Mexico

Number of food stamp recipients: 430,622
Percentage of the state’s population on food stamps: 20.65%
Total cost of just these benefits alone (That is, how much do just the money on those EBT cards cost the state?): Around $53.12 million
Cost of benefits alone per capita in this state: $25.47 per person

2. District of Columbia

Number of food stamp recipients: 142,707
Percentage of the state’s population on food stamps: 21.66%
Total cost of just these benefits alone (That is, how much do just the money on those EBT cards cost the state?): Around $17.6 million
Estimated cost of benefits alone per capita in this state: $26.72 per person

1. Mississippi

Number of food stamp recipients: 656,871
Percentage of the state’s population on food stamps: 21.94%
Total cost of just these benefits alone (That is, how much do just the money on those EBT cards cost the state?): Around $81.03 million
Estimated cost of benefits alone per capita in this state: $27.06 per person

http://www.wallstcheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/food-stamp-chart-final-feb-2015-e1423752402326.jpg?397988&397988 169 Reactions

(http://wallstcheatsheet.com/view-image?src=2015/01/food-stamp-chart-final-feb-2015.jpg&397988)Graphic by Erika Rawes//data from Census and USDA

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[mick silver]

With a grocery bills priced as high as $1,300 per month (http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/USDAFoodPlansCostofFood/reports) as of late, some American workers simply cannot afford all of their groceries on top of everything else they already have to buy. This is why the government offers food stamps.
The USDA Food and Nutrition Service (http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/datastatistics/September-Performance-Report-2014.pdf) reports that as of September 2014, there were around 46.5 million individual food stamp recipients (22.7 million households) receiving an average benefit of $123.74 each (around $257 per household).

To be eligible, a household has to earn a gross income amount that’s less than 130% of the poverty level, or a net income amount (gross income minus deductions) that’s less than 100% of the poverty level for their family size.
This means, a single person can be eligible for food stamps if his or her gross monthly income is under $1,265 ($15,180 per year), and a family of four can be eligible if they gross less than $2,584 per month ($31,008 per year). The applicant also can’t be a wealthy person who simply doesn’t have a steady income source. So, if the applicant has thousands of dollars sitting in the bank, for instance, they won’t apply as cash assets are considered as well.
So overall, the program makes perfect sense on paper. It sounds completely reasonable: If you earn too little money, you can temporarily receive a card for your groceries for a while. Food stamps help millions of individuals and families, but the corresponding billions of dollars that the program costs make some taxpayers critical of it.
A taxpayer’s view of the welfare system depends on many factors — his or her upbringing, personal experiences, and even where he or she lives. In some areas of the country, food stamp use is more common than in others.
We’ve created a list of the states that have the most food stamp recipients per capita. To determine the states on this list, we used the USDA Food Nutrition Service’s most recent state-by-state data (http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/pd/29SNAPcurrPP.pdf), coupled with population data from the Census Bureau (http://www.census.gov/popest/data/state/totals/2014/index.html). States with the highest number of food stamp participants relative to population ranked highest. We’ve also included a state-by-state breakdown of food stamp use in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
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[palani]

A new state is one where welfare is required. 100% of the residents of these new states are on welfare. In fact, that is the only requirement to be a member of this new body politic.

I don't know if they require stamps (FOOD STAMPS?) but free food is a given in these new states. This appears to be a direct outgrowth of ration cards from WWI (phase deuce).

In Haiti the food is not free but they make cookies from mud and charge very little for the 'service'.

[Shami-Amourae]

As automation ramps up these numbers will explode to the inverse fractionally. So instead of 1 in 5 it will be 4 in 5 being on food stamps. There simply are not enough good paying jobs to go around and most people will be unable to retrain themselves fast enough.

Very few people will be immune to this and a lot of it will happen in our lifetimes.

Technology grows at an exponential rate, not incrementally.

[singular_me]

when I work at the gas station up here, I have the impression that at least 50% is on food stamps. yet they are the biggest lottery players and brag that they go to the casino on a regular basis, and very often drive fancy trucks and SUVs.

[Hitch]

buy guns and ammo.

This is not going to end well.

[Glass]

$1300 per month sounds like a lot for food. How many is the family for that kind of spend?

actually looking at it and rough extrapolation given I'm me and a cat. I probably spend $100 a week on feeding myself. That's with 5 purchased lunches at $10 a piece. I could probably do it for about $75.00 for myself taking lunch. So maybe $300 per month. Family of 4 and we are right there on the money.

[mick silver]

If you have been behind someone with a food stamp card you can see why it take so much to feed a family of four all they buy is box food we have never seen them buy a bag of beans are rice just junk food in a box . a cart filled with pizza an junk cannot be good for the body

[steyr_m]

With a grocery bills priced as high as $1,300 per month (http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/USDAFoodPlansCostofFood/reports) as of late, some American workers simply cannot afford all of their groceries on top of everything else they already have to buy. This is why the government offers food stamps.

Maybe it is simplistic, but maybe many people buy all kinds of crap they do not need because hey know they can rely on food stamps. I cannot paint everyone with the same brush -- but I'm sure there are some bad spending habits out there because of Govt. guarantees.

[Dogman]

Maybe it is simplistic, but maybe many people buy all kinds of crap they do not need because hey know they can rely on food stamps. I cannot paint everyone with the same brush -- but I'm sure there are some bad spending habits out there because of Govt. guarantees.

For sure, on the habits, but for some honest people the stamps are a must, because of circumstances beyond their control, shit does happen.

But as usual for every good done there are they that will abuse that good, and the abusers need to have their bits and parts pinned to a wall.

Look at all the shysters that pop up all the time trying to make an easy buck off the back of others, it is endless.

[Glass]

For sure, on the habits, but for some honest people the stamps are a must, because of circumstances beyond their control, shit does happen.

But as usual for every good done there are they that will abuse that good, and the abusers need to have their bits and parts pinned to a wall.

Look at all the shysters that pop up all the time trying to make an easy buck off the back of others, it is endless.

and thats the main reason for not having these things in place. The other issue is the anonymity of it all. People have no idea how many people are queuing for rations because the rations are distributed through the same channels as regular supplies.

IF all of those people were forced to queue at specific food banks then there would be something to see and consequently something to fix. As it is, see no evil, everything's fine and dandy.

And people would say you can't make people queue, it would be humiliating BUT it would only be humiliating for a short time because it would be sorted quick smart.

Anyway they should not be able to buy booze or smokes. Don't know if they can there. Here they can because it's all cash, no ration/eft cards. BTW smokes are now $27.50 for a pack of 25. I could not believe the price.

[TRUTHseekr]

I'm shocked Texas is not in New Mexico's spot for #3, maybe because it didn't suffer as much during the recession, but I still see a of teet leechers everywhere in TX not just border towns.

[Dogman]

I'm shocked Texas is not in New Mexico's spot for #3, maybe because it didn't suffer as much during the recession, but I still see a of teet leechers everywhere in TX not just border towns.

Agreed !

A full rainbow of them, some I conciser ligitement and others slackers and or born into the system and know no better and expect the handouts.

But I suspect all states have the same.

The honest and deserving that will only take from the system until they can pull themselves out of it or the ones that are from cradle to grave as you say tit suckers, and would run with an endless bucket full of excuses not to work an honest job. But I also knew many that would jump at the chance of working and work their asses off trying to do good.

[General of Darkness]

What's interesting is that if you add up all the people on food stamps in the top 7 you get to the amount in California, which is over 4 fucking million.

[Publico]

Who says the numbers are reported correctly? It seems to me more than 15% of the people at the grocery store are using either a SNAP card or WIC check.

[Cebu_4_2]

Who says the numbers are reported correctly? It seems to me more than 15% of the people at the grocery store are using either a SNAP card or WIC check.

About 1 in 3 here.

[hoarder]

Any correlation here?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_by_African-American_population