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1 1 (June 2, 2017)

handle is hein.crs/govcfxu0001 and id is 1 raw text is: F., ' riE SE-.$ri ,,,- i June 2, 2017 Farm Bill Primer: SNAP and Other Nutrition Title Programs The Nutrition title of the farm bill typically reauthorizes a number of nutrition or domestic food assistance programs. These include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly the Food Stamp Program) and certain other programs administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Food and Nutrition Service (ENS). These programs (listed below, with additional detail in Table 1) were last reauthorized by the Agriculture Act of 2014 (2014 farm bill; P.L. 113-79). They are authorized through September 30, 2018. Farm bills since 1973 have included reauthorization of the Food Stamp Program (renamed SNAP in 2008). Farm BOR The major programs reauthorized in the 2014 farm bill were the following: * SNAP and related grant programs (e.g., SNAP Employment & Training); * Programs in lieu of SNAP: Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), grants for certain territories; * The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP); * Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP); * Community Food Projects; and * Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP). SNAP is the largest of USDA's domestic food assistance programs, in both participation and spending (see Table 1). The authorizing statutes for the child nutrition programs (National School Lunch Program and other institutional food service programs) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) are typically reauthorized in a child nutrition reauthorization, not a farm bill. These programs were last reauthorized by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-96). However, the 2008 and 2014 farm bills did include policies related to the purchase and distribution of food to schools. Though the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) is authorized in a statute typically amended in child nutrition reauthorization, the 2008 and 2014 farm bills made some changes to this program. According to the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO's) projected costs at the time of enactment, the Nutrition title made up nearly 80% of spending under the 2014 farm bill. SNAP accounted for the vast majority of the spending in this title. SNAP is authorized as open-ended mandatory spending and is funded through appropriations laws. As such, amending SNAP eligibility, benefits, or other program rules can have a budgetary impact. At the same time, the availability of appropriated funding also affects SNAP's operation. SNAP's spending is largely driven by program participation, which can fluctuate due to economic conditions and program rules (see Figure 1). Approximately 95% of SNAP spending is for the benefits themselves, which are 100% federally funded. Administrative costs of eligibility determination are shared between the states and the federal government. Other SNAP spending includes funds for nutrition education and Employment and Training (E&T). Figure I. SNAP Participation and Federal Spending (FY 199 I-FY2016) ,N\\\M Other SNAP Spending {Ieft axis) N& ' Benefits Spending(left axis ..... MAg, Monthly Participation (right axisj $Billions Millions 3 40. .:::.. ..... .. ....~. :.. .. ....... ..:.. , 3 Source: CRS, using USDA-FNS Administrative Data. Note: Data underlying this chart are available in CRS Report R42505 (see below). The programs in lieu of SNAP (except for a small amount of FDPJR) are also mandatory spending. TEFAP's entitlement commodity funds for food are mandatory spending, while the program's administrative costs are discretionary. CSFP is discretionary spending. FFVP and SFMNP receive mandatory funding from sources outside of annual appropriations bills. The 2014 farm bill was formulated and enacted amid contentious debate that centered on SNAP spending and certain program rules. The enacted 2014 farm bill had to reconcile significant differences between the House- and Senate-passed SNAP provisions. The enacted bill ultimately included changes to the treatment of Low- Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) payments in the calculation of SNAP benefits, funding and authority to implement and evaluate Employment and Training (E&T) Pilot Projects, changes to standards for SNAP-authorized retailers, and a new Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive grant program, among other changes. The law did not change SNAP's financial eligibility rules, gogn, q \pop\qm -,\\mw--, ggmm g , q aS ' X 11LULANJILiN,

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