Low-income families dependent on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will have to tighten their budgets as the $5 billion cut to the program goes into effect this Friday.

The cuts will affect more than 47 million Americans, including 22 million children, according to a report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan think tank. This is also the first time in history that benefits from the program will be cut for every recipient, the center stated.

SNAP benefits were increased during the economic recession in 2009 with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, according to New York state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance’s website.

Instead of continuing the benefits, the House of Representatives voted last month to let the boosted benefits expire. As of July 2013, there are 33,000 households in Onondaga County that receive SNAP benefits, said Sarah Hamersma, an assistant professor of public administration and international affairs in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.

She said households dependent on SNAP can expect, at most, a 6 percent decrease in their benefits.

The 2009 boost in SNAP benefits was meant to ease the financial burden of Americans during the recession, Hamersma said.

“The main concern with scaling back SNAP is that the populations using the benefits tend to be those who have not yet experienced economic recovery from the recession,” she said.

A reduction in the food stamp program will also put pressure on organizations like soup kitchens and pantries that provide emergency food assistance, said Marjorie DeVault, undergraduate director of sociology at Maxwell.

“In the current period of economic insecurity, it’s clear that many people need the help they get from the food stamp program,” DeVault said.

The nationwide SNAP cuts will mean a $332 million cut for New York through September 2014 that will affect 3,185,000 state residents, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities’ report.

Syeisha Byrd, director of the Office of Engagement Programs, said she worries about the effect the cuts will have on families in the Syracuse community.

Byrd grew up in a household that required assistance from SNAP in the Westside of Syracuse. She recalls that many of the single-parent households in her community required the assistance of the food stamp program.

Although her parents were employed, their salaries were not enough to cover the costs of food for the family. This is an issue that persists today and will be exacerbated by the new cutbacks, she said.

The center’s report indicated that with the cuts the benefits will average less than $1.40 per person per meal.

One way Byrd hopes to help her community in the face of the new cuts is by emphasizing ways to get the most out of the money people are given for food, such as couponing.

“Why not offer moms more ideas on how to save or how to stretch the dollar?” Byrd said. “I’ve been working with a few moms in the community and teaching them how to do that. It’s tough because when I think of food stamps I think of moms with a few children at home that really need that support.”

Published on October 31, 2013 at 3:09 am

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