Changes in Food-At-Home Spending by SNAP Participants After the Stimulus Act of 2009

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 temporarily raised SNAP benefit levels to help low-income Americans cope with the economic crisis of the Great Recession. ERS analyses found that during 2008-09, each dollar of SNAP assistance raised participants’ at-home food spending by an average of 53 cents—a higher portion than in previous studies. The lowest income households had the highest propensity to spend SNAP benefits on food—for every $1 in SNAP benefits, these households increased their food spending by 62 cents.