More Troops Relying on Food Stamps

Military members and their families are using more food stamps than in previous years – redeeming them last year at nearly twice the civilian rate, according to Defense Commissary Agency figures.

The agency reports that more than $31 million worth of food stamps were used at commissaries nationwide in 2008 – an increase of about $6.2 million, or more than 25 percent – from the $24.8 million redeemed in 2007. That contrasts with a 13 percent overall increase in food stamp use by Americans for the same period, according to the Department of Agriculture, which administers the food stamp program.

The spike reverses a 5 percent decrease in food stamp redemptions by military families from 2006 to 2007.

The commissary agency stressed that its figures include military retirees as well as Reservists and National Guardsmen who shop at its commissaries. Commissary agency officials were unable to provide numbers for the first half of 2009.

The rise in food stamp usage in the military may also be attributed to a recent change in the way the program is administered. Program users may now use a debit card to buy with food stamps rather than traditional paper vouchers – decreasing their visibility and so eliminating any stigma or reluctance to using the government-funded aid.

The increase in food stamp usage by military families can be viewed as part of a larger, national trend. Figures show that food stamp use had been rising sharply across the country even before the current recession, even though much of the previous decade was marked by a robust economy.

In 2000, there were slightly more than 17 million Americans on food stamps, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a Washington-based think tank focused on issues impacting low-income Americas.

By 2005, the number had increased to nearly 26 million while a government report issued earlier this year found that more than 32 million people are on food stamps.

That equates to roughly one in 10 Americans receiving government aid for food at a rate of approximately $118 per person.

With unemployment continuing to climb and mixed economic indicators causing further volatility on Wall Street, it appears the rise in food stamps is unlikely to cease any time soon.

The numbers provided by commissary agency show men and women in uniform are caught up in the trend, though the agency is unable to provide details about where and how food stamps are redeemed.

Despite accepting food stamps since 1991, the agency is unable to determine how usage breaks down by branch of service, gender and rank. It did, however, say that usage is higher on installations in the eastern region of the United States versus the west.

Food stamps are not used at overseas installations.

The Defense Department conducted its last study on food stamp usage in 2002 and found that 2,100 members of the armed forces redeemed the aid. That figure represented slightly more than 1/10 of 1 percent of the military and had decreased significantly from 19,400 service members using food stamps in 1991.

A military spokeswoman said the seven-year-old study linked living on base with using food stamps.

“That some military members continue to qualify for food stamps is primarily a result of the Department of Agriculture excluding the value of government-provided housing as income in determining eligibility for the food stamp program. The study indicated that the majority of military food stamp recipients lived on base,” Eileen M. Lainez said in an e-mail to Military.com.

“The fact that some enlisted members and even a few officers received food stamps was more a result of larger household sizes and living in government quarters than an indicator of inadequate military compensation.”

Congress is currently investigating the possibility of increasing benefits to certain troops so they would not be able to qualify for food stamps.