Some 46.25 million people received food stamps in the latest count, the lowest figure in seven months, said USDA. Enrollment in December 2014, the most recent month available, was 11,000 lower than the month before. Participation peaked at a record 47.8 million in December 2012. The anti-hunger group Food Research and Action Center said enrollment fell by 530,000 people, or 1 percent during 2014. “Economic improvements are expected to slow SNAP participation, but economic hardship and need for food assistance remain relatively high,” said FRAC.
In updated projections, the Congressional Budget Office said the food stamp program would cost about 1-percent less than originally forecast for the remainder of the 2014 farm law. Monthly per-person benefits would be slightly lower, said CBO, which did not change its projections of enrollment or food inflation. CBO says enrollment in fiscal 2016, which begins on Oct. 1, will average 44.3 million, compared to 46 million this year. Analysts say participation will drop because economic recovery will limit some adults without young children to three months of benefits.