SILVERTON, OR
-
September 27 - A study released this week by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) found that over 110,000 of the 328,000 Oregonians
eligible for food stamps in September, 1997, were not receiving them. The
study, the most up-to-date estimate of food stamp participation rates in
the states, found that just 66 percent of eligible Oregonians were
receiving food stamps after the onslaught of welfare reform.
"This study highlights the importance of aggressive food stamp outreach,
particularly given Oregon's high hunger rate," said Michael Leachman, a
policy analyst at the Oregon Center for Public Policy. According to a USDA
study released last year, Oregon had the highest percentage of households
experiencing hunger of any state in the nation in the late 1990s.
The new USDA report shows dramatic differences by state in food stamp
participation. Participation rates ranged from a low of 45 percent of those
eligible in Nevada to a high of 92 percent in West Virginia. The report
covers September 1994 to September 1997. During that period, food stamp
participation nationally declined from 71 percent to 62 percent of those
eligible. In Oregon food stamp participation declined from 72 percent to 66
percent of those eligible.
In August, the state Interagency Coordinating Council on Hunger (ICCH)
emphasized in a letter to the Governor the importance of an extensive food
stamp outreach program. The ICCH recommended that Oregon establish a goal
of reaching 80 percent of all Oregonians eligible for food stamps. The ICCH
is a committee of state agencies charged with recommending policy changes
to address hunger in Oregon.
"Thanks to this new study, we have the information we need to judge the
State's progress in improving its food stamp outreach efforts," said
Moureen Rosera of Oregon Action, a grass-roots organizing group that has
pressed for clear outreach goals.
Leachman added that, "based on the 1997 numbers reported in this USDA
study, the state welfare agency would have to add 46,000 eligible
Oregonians to the food stamp caseload to meet the 80 percent goal they
established with the ICCH."
From July 1996 to July 1999, the number of people receiving food stamp
benefits fell 22 percent, from 283,516 to 220,111. The number is up
slightly this year, to 233,057.
The study was conducted for the USDA by Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.,
a national, nonpartisan research organization. The report, "Reaching Those
in Need: Participation Rates in the States," is available on the USDA
website at http://www.fns.usda.gov/oane/MENU/Published/FSP/FILES/Reaching.pdf.
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