Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

SD lags in food-assistance enrollment

County ranks 42nd out of 58 counties in the state

Despite repeated criticism and refutation by local government officials, a report released last week by the Public Policy Institute of California finds that San Diego still lags well behind the state and nation in enrolling eligible low-income houses in CalFresh, California's version of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, still commonly referred to as "food stamps."

San Diego landed in a six-way tie for 42nd out of 58 counties in the state, enrolling an estimated 30.7 percent of eligible households in the CalFresh program — the statewide average enrollment was 37.2 percent. In order to qualify for benefits, recipients must have an adjusted household income level less than double the federal poverty rate, currently about $24,000 for a family of four.

Sponsored
Sponsored

The cost of providing food assistance is largely borne by the federal government, which means that higher enrollment of eligible families brings more money into the region. In 2015, California received $7.53 billion, or about $142 a month toward each enrolled family's grocery bill — another $80 million program funded by the state (equaling about 1 percent of total expenditures) provides benefits to non-citizen permanent legal residents ineligible for federal assistance.

Current enrollments are an improvement: in 2010, San Diego County ranked 55th of 58, enrolling only 26.5 percent of eligible households. But the county doesn't necessarily see things the same way.

Last November, the county disputed another study finding just under 50 percent eligible enrollment by claiming that a full 90 percent of local residents able to claim benefits were doing so. Still, there's no doubt that participation in food-assistance programs is on the rise, though Californians are far less likely than residents of other states to rely on federal aid.

"California’s SNAP enrollment has lagged behind the nation for more than a decade, but the gap is narrowing," says the Public Policy Institute study. "During the Great Recession and its aftermath, the share of all Californians receiving CalFresh rose sharply — from 5.7% in 2008 to 11.3% in 2015. Still, in the rest of the United States, 14.7% of residents received SNAP benefits in 2015."

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Gonzo Report: Downtown thrift shop offers three bands in one show

Come nightfall, Humble Heart hosts The Beat
Next Article

Raging Cider & Mead celebrates nine years

Company wants to bring America back to its apple-tree roots

Despite repeated criticism and refutation by local government officials, a report released last week by the Public Policy Institute of California finds that San Diego still lags well behind the state and nation in enrolling eligible low-income houses in CalFresh, California's version of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, still commonly referred to as "food stamps."

San Diego landed in a six-way tie for 42nd out of 58 counties in the state, enrolling an estimated 30.7 percent of eligible households in the CalFresh program — the statewide average enrollment was 37.2 percent. In order to qualify for benefits, recipients must have an adjusted household income level less than double the federal poverty rate, currently about $24,000 for a family of four.

Sponsored
Sponsored

The cost of providing food assistance is largely borne by the federal government, which means that higher enrollment of eligible families brings more money into the region. In 2015, California received $7.53 billion, or about $142 a month toward each enrolled family's grocery bill — another $80 million program funded by the state (equaling about 1 percent of total expenditures) provides benefits to non-citizen permanent legal residents ineligible for federal assistance.

Current enrollments are an improvement: in 2010, San Diego County ranked 55th of 58, enrolling only 26.5 percent of eligible households. But the county doesn't necessarily see things the same way.

Last November, the county disputed another study finding just under 50 percent eligible enrollment by claiming that a full 90 percent of local residents able to claim benefits were doing so. Still, there's no doubt that participation in food-assistance programs is on the rise, though Californians are far less likely than residents of other states to rely on federal aid.

"California’s SNAP enrollment has lagged behind the nation for more than a decade, but the gap is narrowing," says the Public Policy Institute study. "During the Great Recession and its aftermath, the share of all Californians receiving CalFresh rose sharply — from 5.7% in 2008 to 11.3% in 2015. Still, in the rest of the United States, 14.7% of residents received SNAP benefits in 2015."

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Trophy truck crushes four at Baja 1000

"Two other racers on quads died too,"
Next Article

Trump names local supporter new Border Czar

Another Brick (Suit) in the Wall
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader